Cosmic Strings
by Papergirlpapertownn
Summary: Alexandra Prince knew she was destined for greatness but could never achieve it. Not like her mother anyway. Until a man named Rip Hunter recruits her for a mission more dangerous than anything she's encountered. Traveling through time to stop an immortal tyrant, if she and her friends succeed they won't be remembered as heroes. They'll become Legends.
1. Pilot Part One

They flew over the shiny towers of National City, Rip staring out at the darkened metropolis before landing atop the building lit up with the name of one of the most promising millionaires since Oliver Queen.

Gideon's voice rang through the ship, "Can I ask who we are searching for Captain?"

"Our final recruit," Rip announced, leaning over the desk that took up most of the bridge, "Princess Alexandra of Themiscyra, better known in this universe by her alias, Wonder Girl."

***  
Her lasso wrapped around the neck of the alien and she tugged, pulling hard enough to snap it before drawing her sword, the self-named godkiller slicing through the amphibious flesh with laughable ease.

A flash of light entered her vision and she skids to a stop, catching a glimpse of a thin man in a long coat, a newly grown goatee crawling across his face.

She gathered her lasso by her side, the golden light emanating from the braided rope as she turned to meet the newcomer's gaze.

"Who the hell are you?" Her accent had almost faded from the amount of time she had spent in National City, but it helped intimidate others. She could see why her mom used it.

A smirk crossed the man's face, "Alexandra Prince, I've been waiting to meet you."

She tightened her grip on the rope, a gesture he was quick to notice.

"You can use your magical lasso on me another time," Another flash of light went off and she felt her body collapse to the ground, eyesight going black.

Wind rang in her hair as she came to, eight others surrounding her. She sprang up, grateful for her mother's ability to bounce back and heal quickly.

"Where are we?" The blonde beside her groaned, joining her in staring over the city. Alex finally recognized the woman when she met her eyes.

Sara Lance.

The girl who came back to life.

"I have absolutely no idea," Alex answered, her curls whipping around her face as another voice interjected.

"Why don't we ask the guy who kidnapped us?" A teen asked from behind her, "British dude with a flashy light thingy? Ring any bells?"

"The name's Rip Hunter" The same man that had apprehended her on the roof seemed to appear out of nowhere, "I'm from East London," He paused before adding, "Oh, and the future."

Alex rolled her eyes as the two burly criminals that had been plastered all over the news recently pointed their guns at the man who kidnapped them. When they didn't work, Rip simply explained that he had tampered with each of their weapons.

"Excluding yours of course," He pointed at Alex, who narrowed her brows, "Sacred relics are rather hard to tamper with."

She sent him a sarcastic smile and crossed her arms, carefully observing his posture as he began to pace back and forth.

"I've assembled you all because I need your help," Rip announced, "The future of the world is in peril because of a man named Vandal Savage,"

"That's impossible," A blonde man closer to Rip announced, "We destroyed him"

The woman by his side nodded in agreement, "The Green Arrow and Flash helped us do it."

Rip pointed his finger at the pair, "And therein lies the issue," Sensing the confused looks on their faces he continued to elaborate, "Unless you or Mr. Hall deliver the final blow, Savage can restore himself from a single cell."

"He's immortal," The named Mr. Hall contributed, "And Kendra and I reincarnate."

Sara tilted her head, "Done that before" She quipped.

Alex smirked at her comment before interjecting one of her own, "Me too."

The same criminal from earlier piped up, his gruff voice staying at the same tone, "What the hell does this Randall guy have to do with us?"

Alex let out a huff, staring around at the group of people while Hunter continued his tangent about how Savage's rise to power will eventually decimate the entire world. She didn't see heroes when she looked at this group.

She saw criminals, lost souls, and people unsure of where they belonged.

They weren't a team. They were barely functioning humans.

How did he expect them to take down an immortal being like Savage?

"I know it's difficult to fathom" Rip continued, pressing forward, "But in 2166, the people on this roof, all of you, are more than heroes, you're legends."

Alex met Sara's skeptical gaze, the two women sharing an understood language. This rag-tag group of criminals became legends?

She didn't see it.

"Legends?" She and a man she thought she recognized spoke at the same time. His wide smile reminded her of a puppy dog as he waved at her. She nodded and turned back toward Rip, who had a sly smile on his face.

"Forgive me," The older man beside Sara piped up, "But doesn't one have to be...dead to be considered a legend?"

In a rare moment of synchronicity, the group shifted their heads toward the man who had brought them all here.

"It's too dangerous for you to know too much about your own futures," Rip warned and Alex sighed, "But each one of you is destined for greatness,"

"So you've told us," Alex chimed in, getting tired of his argument, "But we've yet to see it."

He sent a smirk and met her challenging look, "If you don't follow me, this is what is in store for you 150 years from now."

The cityscape surrounding them shifted to decimated buildings and wildfire running rampant through the streets. Alex knew it was fake, that it was a projection of the future, but the part of her that she had buried, the part that still believed in the goodness of others, the part that belonged to her mother.

That part urged her to go on the mission. That part told her that she could not stand idly by while Savage overtook the future.

"I could have chosen any time and any place." Rip shut off the projection, facing the heroes, "Of all the people who ever lived, I chose you nine. I certainly hope that you won't let me, and the world, down." He seemed to look directly at her as he said that and moved away, "If your answer is yes, meet me at this address in 36 hours" He told the older man, shoving a card in his hands before disappearing into the night.

Alex stood there for a while, contemplating Rip's offer even after the rest of his so-called team had bailed. She fingered the extrapolator Rip had left in her pocket. She could go home. It would be so easy.

"You know it's not healthy to brood," A familiar voice joined her side, "My dad taught me that lesson before I could walk."

Alex chuckled, facing the twin of her best friend from her original Earth. Only here his name was Thomas, not Alfred, and he wasn't a vigilante seeking revenge for the death of his father.

"Yeah, well your dad would understand." She shot back, crossing her arms and meeting his blue eyes, "Especially since I might die if I don't brood for a bit."

Thomas chuckled, sauntering closer to her, his black trench coat swaying, "This is about that guy that kidnapped you isn't it?"

Alex nodded, dropping her arms and sending him a saccharine smile, "Apparently he's a time traveler and I'm supposed to be one of the heroes that saves the world. God, it's times like these I'm glad I'm not my mother."

Thomas chuckled again and joined her side, looking over the bright lights of National City from the rooftop of his building. "She'd be proud of you here too." He began to comfort her, "So would your dad."

Alex smiled and rubbed the worn leather of the old watch she wore on her wrist, her bracers hidden by the long sleeves of her leather jacket. It would be so easy. To go back and save him before any of this happened.

To make sure he would be around to see his little girl grow up.

But she knew she couldn't. In the same way, she knew she had to go on this mission. She straightened her back and lifted her chin.

"Oh no," Thomas teased, "I know that look."

She turned to face him, "I have to go, Thomas," She stared out at the skyscrapers and the community she had come to recognize as home, "My mother was born to save the world. I have to believe I was born to protect it."

The shorter brunete smirked before catching the Amazon in an embrace, squeezing tightly, "Take care of yourself, Prince," He pulled away.

Alex shared a small smile with him, "You too Wayne."

With a single leap, she landed back at her apartment, the bookcase Thomas helped her build disappearing with a single touch of her hand, the blue and red armor on display. She grasped the sword in her right hand, shield in her left and began to pack.

Daybreak was hitting just as she and the rest of the group showed up at the address Rip had given them all. She ignored the petty fights breaking out between the Professor and the two criminal partners while she examined the clearing Rip had told them to meet in.

"Great," She muttered under her breath, "So not only do we have a delusional time traveler on our hands, but he's also a late delusional time traveler."

"Or we're being punked" A dark-haired man spoke beside her, "Do people still say punked?"

"No" Sara spoke up, her eyes trained on the same spot Alex was.

Leonard's voice rang out beside her, "You don't look too happy to be here,"

Alex bobbed her head, "Perceptive."

Suddenly the man in the trench coat appeared again, "Glad to see you all decided to come, now we should be on our way."

"Yeah, I'm not footing it anywhere," Leonard began, turning toward Alex, "And not all of us can fly to wherever we want to go."

"In your case, that's a good thing," She shot back, "Saves the world from your terrible sense of humor."

Leonard sent a sarcastic smile at her.

Rip stepped between the two, "A time Master's sacred charge is to do no harm to the timeline" He pressed a button, revealing a spaceship docked in the clearing where there was nothing before, "Can you imagine what a timeship would look like in Victorian England?"

Alex couldn't keep the awe off her face as she examined the interior of the ship. Here she was in a real spaceship. Her father would've freaked.

The silver lining of the walls reminded her of Kara's stories of Krypton, while the glowing orange that decorated the rest of the ship seemed to be more of a personal color choice than anything else.

"Whoever decorated this needs to be shot," Sara spoke aloud, stepping in next to Alex, the taller girl smiling at the blonde's remark.

"Well then it's a good thing we have you on the ship then," Alex teased, bringing a smirk to the other woman's face.

They landed on the bridge of the ship, Alex's eyes darting around the room, eyeing all available exits, weak points, and her peers. She refused to call them teammates. The only person she recognized other than Sara was the dark-haired man she had exchanged a few words with before boarding the ship.

She had seen him in board meetings with Bruce and Oliver before the former's disappearance. She couldn't recall his name though.

Too lost in her thoughts to pay attention to what Rip was saying, and when a disembodied voice told her that they were plotting a course for New Orleans, she simply turned to Sara, who explained away the existence of an artificial intelligence named Gideon like it was a regular occurrence. Alex sighed and strapped in next to the dark-haired man, his bright smile infecting her.

"Hey," He chirped, "I don't think I've met you yet, I'm Ray."

A soft smile broke out across her face as she grasped his hand, "Alex, nice to meet you, Ray."

The infectious expression never left his face as their hands pulled away, Rip charging up the ship to jump into another time.

"So Time Travel huh?" He continued, his grip tightening on the restraints, knuckles growing white, "that's pretty cool."

Alex caught onto the signals immediately, his teeth pulling at the inside of his cheeks, fidgeting in the chair, eyes darting around anxiously. "Not a good flier, are you?" She asked, drawing his attention back to her face.

Ray shook his head, "Not really, no."

Without a word she stuck her hand back out in a peace offering, his gaze darted down to her tanned palm, eyebrows creasing in confusion. She shrugged, "My Mom doesn't do planes either,"

He nodded, wrapping his white knuckles around her own, the pallor contrasting with her own.

"Thanks" Ray responded, leaning back against the chair as they sped off into the distance, arriving in New Orleans at an almost supernatural speed.

The first thing Mick Rory did was vomit all over the floors of the Waverider.

"Ah yes, Nausea is one of the side effects of time travel," Rip began.

"Side effects?" Alex asked, removing the restraint as Ray stood up immediately. A grunt was heard from the floor and the tall man she had flown beside now lay on the floor as if his legs had been pulled out from under him.

"Vertigo," Rip continued, "And temporary blindness,"

"I can't see!" Stein called from next to Jackson, while Alex stood up, feeling perfectly fine. The other half of Stein's creation sprang up, finally awake from his drug-induced coma.

"I want to go home," The twenty-year-old began, rushing toward the man who had brought them all together.

Rip bobbed his head, "Good news Jax, 2016 should be around in…. 41 years."

Jax stepped back in surprise as Rip turned toward her and Sara, "Alright, you four make yourselves comfortable," He gestured to her, Sara, Leonard, and Mick before turning to face the rest of the team, "The rest of you are coming with me,"

"Whoa," Mick stood up, anger lacing his tone, "You're benching us?"

Sara crossed her arms, "I thought we were a team,"

Rip opened and closed his mouth, trying to come up with a viable excuse to justify his decision, "This mission doesn't require your particular skill set," It what he landed on and Alex scoffed.

"Meaning you don't need anyone killed, maimed, robbed, or brought to justice." Snart directed that last comment toward her in a mocking tone

.

Alex sent him a sarcastic smile, "Funny." She collapsed against the seat, rolling her eyes as she watched the rest of the team leave.

All she could do was sit in the chair, watching Leonard play with the settings on his gun and Mick change the channels.

She wrapped and rewrapped her lasso several times until Sara came to the rescue.

"Am I the only one here who could use a drink?"

Alex stood up at that news, "Yes, please. Let's get weird."

"Excellent Idea," Snart piped up, joining the women in leaving the ship while Gideon tried to stop them in the process. Alex simply raised her hand.

"Not in the mood Gideon."

She walked toward her new room on the ship, staring around at the white space surrounding her. She sent a wary look toward her armor before shutting the suitcase closed, grasping her leather jacket and leaving her room, running into Sara as she did.

"What are you wearing that look for?" She teased as the two moved to leave the ship.

Alex shook her head, "I don't know what you're talking about."

The assassin smirked, "You know the look that says you're regretting getting on this death ship in the first place?"

"I didn't come on this ship to get benched," She spat out, unable to stop the wrathful pit in her stomach growing. Sara thankfully shut up as they joined the men outside in the bustling city.

"You and me both Girl Scout," Snart continued, a wry smile on his face.

"Now I definitely need that drink," Alex retorted, sending Sara chuckling and linking her arm in the taller woman's.

They explored the winding streets of New Orleans, ignoring the weird looks they were drawing before entering the first bar they came across and she immediately requested a beer.

"One dollar beers!" Mick shouted as he brought their bottles over, "Gotta love the seventies."

Alex downed most of the wheaty concoction while Mick started the jukebox. Sara's lax attitude wanted her to dance, and she was almost tempted.

"Not a big dancer?" Snart asked, his voice continuing to irritate her.

She took another gulp from her bottle, "Not that you'd care, but no. I don't really care for it."

Dancing reminded her of her father. Of the first time her mother realized she loved Steve Trevor.

She took another swig. Snart almost looked stunned.

"You can hold your liquor. I'm impressed."

"I'm a goddess from Ancient Greece living in Modern day America," She pointed out, "Of course I can hold my liquor."

This actually elicited a chuckle from the criminal beside her and they turned their attention back to Sara who was currently dealing with a man who would not leave her alone.

Alex took a deep breath and handed her beer off to Snart, "Hold this,"

She approached the man, a fake smile plastered on her face as she wrapped her arm around Sara.

"Something wrong honey?" Alex asked, playing the part of a loving girlfriend perfectly as they stared down the man.

Sara traded a sweet look with her, but she knew what lay behind the eyes. "I was just telling this man that I am happily in a relationship."

The burly man looked at the two of them, a smile creeping across his face, "She can come too."

Alex stepped forward, "I don't think so."

The biker's smile curled into a snarl, "Maybe you didn't understand my request, bitch."

His fist propelled toward her and Sara grasped it in her hand, twisting him around until she heard an audible crack, the man's screams drawing attention toward them.

Alex turned back to the two criminals, "We got this," She informed them, smacking her fist into the nearest crony before digging her leg into the stomach of another, crashing the two back into the bar. A fist smacked into her back and she slowly turned around, unfazed by the punch.

She lifted her eyebrows at the man before grabbing ahold of his arm and leg and smacking him into the ground.

She and Sara met back in the middle of the dance floor as more bikers joined the fray.

"Now we could use the help," Sara announced and crashes rang out behind them, the two men more than happy to help crush a few skulls.

They crawled back into the car with hardly any injuries, although the same couldn't be said for the men who had hit on both of them. The car went sideways, crashing into the figure that had been holding a gun over Rip and the professor they had gone looking for while the four of them crawled out of the car.

"We go out for one lousy drink and you guys manage to pick a fight with Boba Fett," Snart quipped, brandishing his gun.

Alex drew her lasso, tossing it forward to get a better grip around the robot man's foot, pulling his footing out from under him. The team took their chance to run back toward the Waverider. Leonard and Mick covered her and Sara as they rushed back to the ship, the ground shaking beneath their feet as they took off.

"Get Professor Boardman to the medbay now!" Rip called to Gideon before calling for the AI to chart a course far away from the 70s.

The ship shook again before Gideon's calm voice rang out through the ship.

"Our cloaking shield and aft entrance have been heavily damaged, Captain,"

Rip let out an exasperated sigh, "Yes I can see that! Station us in the temporal zone until repairs are finished,"

"Temporal Zone?" Ray and Alex asked at the same time, the former's smile breaking out at the coincidence.

"It's a bit like a time limbo, we can hide out there for a bit" Rip explained, drawing himself from the Captain's seat toward the rest of the group.

"A time limbo?" Alex questioned.

The professor couldn't contain his joy, "Astonishing."

"Oh, there's something you people don't know about time travel? That's surprising, isn't it? Considering none of you have ever time traveled before!" Rip yelled at the crew, his temper exploding throughout the bridge, "Bringing a family member from the past onto a timeship? Breaking out and carousing around the 1970s? We've barely begun, and already this is the worst, unmitigated disaster of my career"

His whining was cut short by a fist to the jaw, Kendra's blazing eyes never leaving Rip's gaze.

Mick laughed, congratulating Carter on falling for her.

Kendra never took her eyes off the Captain, "My son is hurt because of you! Who attacked us?"

"It's a long story."

Alex stepped up, crossing her arms in frustration, "So tell it fast then," She quipped.

"His name is Chronos," Rip began after a period of silence, "He works for the time Masters, my former employers."

Sara pressed her brows together, "I thought you were a time Master."

"Like I expressed, Time isn't a linear thing. At one point, yes, I was a time master."

His excuse was once again cut off by a sock to the face, this time coming from Sara.

"Start telling us the truth!" She yelled, eyes blazing the same way Kendra's did.

Wasting no time, Alex grasped the lasso by her side, tossing it over the man who had kidnapped them all. "The lasso of hestia compels you to tell the truth," She whispered the key phrase, her eyes never leaving Rip's.

Rip stared at the Amazon, straightening his back, "I relinquished my position as a time master when I commandeered the Waverider. Chronos was sent to bring me in."

Martin's mirthless laugh could be heard throughout the bridge. "You lied to us."

"Of course I did" Rip snapped, "I needed your help and you all barely said yes as it was."

Alex let out a callous chuckle.

"What about the legends part?" Ray asked from beside her.

She bit her lip, stomach dropping as she realized the truth. "He lied about that too, didn't you?"

Silence hung over the group as they stared at Rip, looking for answers. The rope burned as he struggled to get free.

He paused before swallowing, "I chose you because a hundred years from now, your lives have minimal effect on the timeline." he admitted, tension settling over the group as his confession hung in the air, "I needed your help without disturbing the history of 2166."

Jax shrugged, "So we're like the opposite of legends."

Rip nodded.

"And I suppose I was just plucked from my universe because of my mom right?" Alex asked, anger pressing against her chest as she searched for answers. For anything that proved otherwise.

"No," Rip protested, "I chose you because Savage is working with a criminal from your world. A woman by the name of Kali."

Her arms dropped to her side, releasing the lasso and striding over the man and throwing her balled up hand against his jaw, sending him reeling.

She fumed, breathing growing uneven at the mention of the woman he wanted her to stop. "You had no right," Alex snarled, "Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you."

"I'm with Girl Scout," Leonard piped up, readying his gun.

Rip held his hands in surrender, "Because Gideon wouldn't listen to your commands and you'd be stuck here forever."

A scoff came from behind her and she turned to see Ray moving closer, "Great, so we're not an elite team tasked with taking down one of history's worst bad guys," he spoke sarcastically, "just a bunch of nobodies that time really doesn't give a damn about."

Rip moved forward, ready to plead his case. Alex was ready to tune him out after all his lies. "I didn't lie about the mission itself, or the brutality of Savage himself."

"No but you don't strike me as the kind of guy who would ditch his job for altruistic reasons," Ray chimed in again, crossing his arms, "So tell us Rip, what did Vandal Savage do to you?"

Alex and the rest of the team turned to face the newly revealed liar.

"Time Master's discourage marriage," Rip began, "But I fell in love...and we had a child. Jonas."

"Savage killed your family," Ray whispered, finishing the implied thought for everyone else.

Alex scoffed to herself, the familiar pressure of tears building behind her eyes at the thought of her own circumstances, of her father dead in the ocean and her mother alone. "Boo-hoo," She told Rip, speaking through thick vocal cords.

"I understand, given the circumstances, if you would like to return home," Rip announced, "I'll have Gideon make the jump when repairs are finished, if and when Professor Boardman stabilizes."

Alex shifted on her feet, unsure about the whole ordeal.

"I think we all need some time to consider our options," Stein announced, following the rest of the so-called team out of the bridge.

Alex sat with the only people she recognized, gently rubbing her fingers across the warrior's circlet her mother had given her.

Antiope's circlet.

Diana's circlet.

She refused to believe that she had no effect on the timeline when she was descended from one of the greatest civilizations womankind had ever known.

She deserved better.

_It's not about deserve_, her father's voice spoke to her.

Perhaps he was right.

"What's the point of us even considering this?" Ray asked rhetorically, his positive air all but gone, "I mean, might as well have stayed dead, cause the world doesn't care about any of us. You're just a lost assassin, one warrior out of a thousand and a pair of good for nothing criminals." Ray shoved his hand against his suit pessimistically.

"I can live with that," Rory commented.

"Well, I can't!" Ray burst out before running his hand through his hair, "Can't live with someone putting a cap on my destiny."

"Fate isn't like that," Alex spoke up, drawing the attention of the others in the room, "My mother always told me that fate is like a mountain trail, just because one path is more well worn than the others doesn't mean that it's the right one to take."

Ray shot his gaze up to look at her.

"And if it is set in stone," She continued, drawing the sword from behind her, "Well then I say fate can kiss my ass."

"She's right," Sara stepped up, joining her in trying to rally the troops, "I mean, this mission is about changing the future. Our future. If we have the power to save the world, don't you think we have the power to change our own fate?"

The question caught the rest of the group by surprise, a sly smile crossing Leonard and Mick's faces while Alex turned to Ray.

The scientist shrugged, his smile returning as he spoke, "That's a very good point."

The rest of the team snapped up, joining Sara and Alex as they walked back to the bridge, feeling more unified than they ever had on this ship.

"Whether it wants to happen or not," Ray announced as they moved back onto the bridge to line up, "We're going to change time, erase Savage's future and earn our rightful place in history."

Alex felt her cheeks lift in pride as she caught the rest of the team joining onboard the cause.

"So how do we find this guy?" Sara crossed her arms as she turned to face Rip, ready for anything.

Rip settled into his chair, a determined look settling onto his face as he faced the newly formed team. "I have an idea."


	2. Pilot Part Two

After the whole fiasco with Rip, Alex was eager to be out of the Waverider and in the field. The clothes Gideon had fabricated for her weren't the most comfortable or practical, but they made her fit in and she supposed that was all that mattered.

"Looks like they're checking credentials," Sara whispered in her ear, just enough for Leonard and Mick to hear as well.

Leonard turned to face the two women, ignoring the apprehensive looks they both wore. "Relax ladies, I got this."

The lift was so subtle, Alex wasn't sure she would've noticed it under any other circumstance. All it took was one bump into a terrorist and boom, they had access.

Well, up until Leonard tried to claim he was Arab on his mom's side.

Alex rolled her eyes before pushing forward, ready to take over when Stein approached.

"Is there a problem?" He asked, narrowing his eyes as he began his performance. Alex smirked and latched onto his arm, twirling her hair back and forth as she twisted her face into an innocent smirk, scanning the guard up and down.

Stein rolled with the act, pressing forward, "Do you know who we are? My associates and I are the operational arm of Scimitar."

At the sound of the name, the bodyguard's eyes widened.

"The Lombardo Square bombing, 1963. Murder of Henri Tyran, Canada, 1970. Konig Airport Massacre, 1971." Stein began to list before gesturing toward Alex, "And my wife here planned at least half of those and operates an entirely separate branch, Bottom line? You don't want to doubt us."

Alex continued her smirk and punctured his last remark with a high pitched laugh, cementing the guard's fear of them in one fell swoop before he let them pass.

"You're a special kind of crazy," Mick whispered to the two of them, "I like it."

"Nice one Girl Scout," Leonard whispered in her ear, "Didn't know you had it in you."

She smiled back, "There's a lot of things you don't know about me Leonard," She quipped, following Stein further into the warehouse, the wind blowing through the slits in her dress, covered up by the bright fur coat that Gideon had insisted was popular in 1975. The lasso was stowed safely by her side and all she wanted to do was beat these terrorist's asses.

Carter's voice rang through the comm unit, "Any sign of Savage,"

"He's not here boss," Mick's voice answered. Alex swore she could almost see Rip's disappointment.

Just as they were ready to leave, a series of footsteps brought their attention back to the stage. She had to resist the surprise on her face as she stared up at the man who was supposedly the most horrific villain history had ever seen.

Vandal Savage was...short. Well, shorter than she thought he'd be.

And he was not well-groomed at all. In fact, she was pretty sure his hair was greasy in this lighting.

He began to explain the warhead they had discovered he was selling and Alex stood on high alert, watching for any sign of impending danger.

"What's happening?" Sara asked, her eyes joining Alex's in darting around the area. The Amazon moved her hand to her lasso, ready to fight her way out of here.

"Nobody else is bidding," Leonard stated.

Alex turned to him, "Thanks Captain Obvious," She muttered back sarcastically.

"I prefer Captain Cold," Leonard quipped back, making her roll her eyes.

"Well, Well, Well," A familiar voice pulled her back to the front, a man in a white suit standing before them, "We seem to have a new player, but you seem a bit academic, who are you?"

Alex stepped forward, laying on a thick accent and pushing through the burning pain of the rope to keep their cover.

"My husband is part of the biggest terrorist organization in the country, and I do not think he appreciates my birthday gift being kept from us." She smirked, trying to sound intimidating.

The man in the white suit looked her up and down, a smile on his face, "Well I must say, your...husband has excellent taste I must say," He reached down to kiss the back of her hand, "But yet I've never heard of you or your organization, how is that?"

Rory pulled up beside her, "Back off."

The man's eyes widened before releasing her hand, the rest of the conversation delving into chaos until Savage moved back onto the stage.

"New Offer!" He announced, "A twenty-five percent discount on whoever can bring me the heads of those men."

His finger landed right at their group and Alex moved her hand back to the lasso, quickly pulling it out to defend herself.

"Great," she muttered, "I was looking for an excuse to change out of this outfit."

She threw the fluffy coat on the ground behind her, stepping out of the heels that had been annoying her feet since she put them on.

The lasso launched forward, wrapping itself around the feet of the soldier in front of her, throwing him to the ground before launching a kick into the stomach of another.

The sound of metal clanking rose up from her cuffs, using most of them to dodge the bullets the terrorists were throwing at them. Her lasso moved back and forth, weaving its way through the crowd by body-slamming them into walls or bringing them close enough for her land several punches and kicks, putting them out of commission.

The familiar sound of Ray's suit powering up drew her attention behind her, sending a swift kick in a circle around her, the men collapsing to the ground as she ducked out of the way of another man, elbowing him in the stomach before slamming her fist into his nose, sending him flying. Her warrior sense perked up as she turned her attention to Ray, who was currently fighting off more men than he knew what to do with.

She tossed her lasso forward, the edge of the burning weapon wrapping itself around the wrists of the man targeting Ray. She pulled, bringing him forward before landing a kick square in the chest.

"Thanks" Ray muttered. Alex nodded before gesturing behind him.

"Look out!"

She ducked out of the way of a bullet headed her way before sliding forward, grasping a lone steel pipe to use as a weapon, seeing as she had been forced to leave her sword and shield on the ship. She swept the pipe underneath the man, his back crashing against the cement floor before she plunged the pipe into his chest, a guttural scream leaving his lips.

"Uh guys, we got a nuclear bomb here!" Sara called, drawing Alex and Ray's attention to the stage.

"I got it," Ray called before shrinking down and trying to dismantle it from the inside.

Alex shared a look with Sara when he remerged and the bomb was still functional. "Let me take it, I can fly it out of here."

"No" Sara urged, getting back on the comms, "Professor, Jax, we need you here now!"

Alex turned back to throw another punch in the face of a terrorist before tossing her lasso forward again, calling to Sara as she pulled the target forward, the blonde landing a solid kick to the terrorist's face.

"Nice," Alex complimented before rolling her lasso up again, "Now let's get out of here."

"Agreed."

When they got back to the Waverider, they could already tell that Rip was getting ready to scold them for screwing up and giving away the element of surprise.

"We don't need the element of surprise!" Carter argued, "We know he's in Norway lets go-"

"Unfortunately, we have bigger problems than Savage," Rip warned ominously, his stare lingering on Ray's super suit, "While you were busy saving Norway from nuclear annihilation, Savage sent one of his cronies back to the arms site. Guess what he found?"

Alex shot a nervous look at Ray, realizing why Rip seemed so stern with him.

"Whoops," The man said, his puppy dog smile stretching across his face, oblivious to the tension that settled over the group.

"I am unversed in American colloquialisms," Gideon's voice echoed through the bridge, "Is whoops slang for Oh?"

"Yes!" Rip announced to the rest of the team, "Dr. Palmer seems to have thrown a spanner into the timeline and now-"

The Time Master hit another button his remote, pulling up a video of a city in ruins, flames encompassing every window. "This is Central City in 2016, or at least it was. I don't know what the Neo-fascists who are running it are calling it these days." Rip bemoaned, "Fortunately, what Gideon is showing us is just a forecast of a possible future. Time is like cement, it takes time to set and harden."

"So what?" Alex piped up, "You're saying that because someone knocked a piece of Ray's suit into the 1970s, the rest of them don't have a future to go back too?"

"Them?" Sara asked, creasing her brows.

Alex shrugged, "Different universe remember?"

"Yes, precisely!" Rip confirmed, gesticulating with his finger, "Unless we do something to change it, this future will become immutable."

She shifted on her feet, sharing an apprehensive look with Ray before looking around at the rest of the team.

"Exactly how much time do we have?" Ray asked, leaning forward.

Rip placed his hands on his hips, "Until Savage's men reverse-engineer your tech."

Alex's heart began to pound against her chest, ignoring the conversation taking place between Stein and Ray regarding compounds and particles. All she needed to know was that they could track the suit.

Thankfully, Leonard and Sara looked just as out of the loop as she did.

Carter and Kendra walked in with a different air about them, almost as if they had discovered another piece of the puzzle.

"In Central City, we learned objects associated with the night of our deaths could kill Savage," Kendra began to explain, handing over a small clip of newspaper to Rip.

Carter crossed his arms, ready to explain further, "According to Aldus' notes, this dagger needs to be wielded in conjunction with the incantation."

"What's the incantation say?" Stein asked eagerly, his eyes bugging out behind his glasses.

Kendra shot a nervous look Carter's way, fidgeting with her fingertips, "I don't know, I can't read it."

"It's okay," Carter's hand found itself on Kendra's back, stroking up and down to soothe her, "I'll help you remember."

"Now as for the dagger—" Rip began.

Alex crossed her arms, "You need someone to steal it," She shot a look at Snart, whose face broke out into a smirk.

"Okay fine I'll do it!" Leonard piped up, grasping the newspaper from Rip's hand, "Article says it was purchased by some Russian douchebag named Sasha Mahnovski"

He walked toward the hallway, ready to head out and steal something, his itch needing to be scratched. He pointed toward Alex as he passed by, "You're coming with me Girl Scout, I could use some extra muscle."

Alex rolled her eyes and gathered her lasso in her hands, following him out.

"I'm coming with you," Ray announced, grabbing his jacket and causing the trio to freeze in their tracks as Snart faced the dark-haired man.

"I already got a partner"

"Who I trust even less than you"

The two men looked ready to square off with each other and she knew she had to intervene.

Alex stepped up, facing Leonard before whipping her head around to lock eyes with Ray, "The man has three PhDs and is technically a genius," She pointed out seeing the guilty look on his face, "He may be able to help."

Leonard stayed silent as he and Mick began to walk toward the jumpsuit. Alex's brown eyes met Ray's grateful ones and she nodded, a silent conversation spoken between the two as they headed toward the jumpship, ready to start their mission.

"This is gonna be fun," Ray spoke to her as she strapped in next to him. Alex searched his face for any sign of sarcasm or joking tone that she had missed.

She found none.

"We're breaking into a Russian's house to steal a dagger that is supposed to be the only weapon that can kill an immortal demigod," Alex finally said all of that aloud, chuckling at the ridiculousness of it all, "I suppose we deserve a little fun."

The two exchanged smiles before settling into their seats, a warmth growing inside her chest.

She crouched next to the rest of the men, searching for any sign of extra security at the house. Leonard and Mick exchanged battle plans, unable to find anything except armed guards and motion detectors.

"There are three openings we could go through," Alex offered, "The back is out of the question, because-"

"It's the most obvious," Leonard finished for her, "We could use the window but-"

"Motion sensors would catch us at first glance," Alex explained, huffing in disappointment.

Leonard's lips curled into a smirk, "Front door it is. We just need to figure out how-"

"What are you doing?" Mick called to Ray, who was now walking out of their cover and possibly exposing them.

"I recognize the security system!" Ray exclaimed excitedly, "My parents had the same one, I'll have the security code and access cracked before you could say breaking and entering."

Alex reached out to stop him, only freezing when their cover was in danger of being blown. She watched as Ray pried open the box, pressing a few buttons before turning around with a wide smile on his face. Mick and Leonard weren't far behind.

It was a dummy box, just like Alex suspected. She sighed and grasped her sword, moving forward to take out the armed guards that had shown up at an unnaturally fast speed.

All it took were two blows to the head and they were home free.

Alex patted Ray's shoulder reassuringly before following Snart and Rory into the mansion, a sympathetic smile plastered on her face.

The foyer was filled to the brim with treasures, most of which stood on tables in the middle of the carpet, encased in glass boxes.

One, in particular, caught her eye.

"That's the Helm of Ares," She whispered reverently, bringing her hand against the glass casing, examining the only remaining remnant of her great uncle. Of the evil who had stolen her father from her. Of the evil her mother had brought down.

"What does it do?" Ray asked, his curiosity piqued.

She continued to stare in awe, "It grants the wearer untold strength and power. Some say it can grant control of the skies, but that's a myth." She spoke rapidly, "Everyone knows Zeus is the only one who can grant that power."

A sinking feeling fell in her stomach and flashes of bright blue waters and rolling green hills filled her mind. Themyscira would always be home.

A part of her would always miss it.

She fingered the disk in her jacket pocket. She could just go home right now.

She could be back in a moment, no one would know.

And if she didn't matter to the timeline, then it wouldn't be noticed right? She wouldn't be missed.

"Found it!" Ray's cheerful voice pulled her out of her thoughts and she joined the rest of the group in gathering around the weapon that would accomplish their mission, "Is there a trick to opening the case?"

His question was met with the sound of shattering glass and flashing lights.

"I think that's it," Alex pointed out, a soft chuckle passing her lips. Ray shrugged.

Mick turned to walk away from the rest of the group, "You guys grab the goodies, I'll find the safe."

Suddenly Alex understood why Snart was so eager to take this mission. More money for him. A great score.

"What do you think you're doing?" Ray asked incredulously, grasping Snart by the shoulder, "This is what we came here for."

"No it's what you came here for," Leonard responded callously, shrugging Ray's hand off of him, "Take your hand off of me."

Ray refused, "I won't let you jeopardize another mission," He spoke with uncharacteristic determination.

Leonard pressed forward, leaving little space between the two men, "This is my mission."

"Hey!" Alex called, stepping between the two opposing forces, "We're here to accomplish the same goal. Steal the dagger, if Snart wants to grab a couple of souvenirs then that's on him."

"The lady's right," Snart responded cooly, "and I'm done asking politely."

Before she could comprehend what was happening, Snart's fist collided with Ray's jaw, sending the other man reeling.

"Hey!" Alex called, her tone disapproving.

Ray whirled around, eyes blazing, "Oh and I'm gonna listen to someone who's spent half his life in prison?"

This time Leonard was on the receiving end of the punch, Ray's unknown strength sending Snart collapsing into one of the displays, Ares' Helm clanging against the floor as sirens filled the room, a bright red light flashing back and forth as silver bars slammed down around them, caging the three of them together.

"Great," Alex shot at the two men, "God, can you guys check your egos for one goddamn minute?"

"He started it!" Ray protested.

"I don't care who started it!" Alex shouted back, her impatience flaring. Unfortunately, she did not take after her mother in that aspect, "Find us a way out of here."

Snart sent her an unusual look before calling for his partner. "Mick!"

"What the hell happened?" The other convict called, walking back into the foyer.

Leonard shot a dirty look at Ray, "It was this idiot's fault,"

"Your partner's fault" Ray shot back indignantly.

Alex let out an exasperated sigh, "It doesn't matter whose fault it is" She chimed in, turning toward Rory, "Just fix it."

Snart turned back to Mick, uttering orders to his partner to follow before leaning down and cracking open a panel in one of the podiums. It revealed a mess of wires and panels that was definitely too sophisticated for her to understand.

"How did you learn to do that?" Ray asked, almost speaking Alex's exact thoughts.

Leonard didn't take his eyes off the wiring as he delicately moved his fingers through the tangled mess, "When I was a kid my dad would bring me on jobs" He explained, "I had little hands, could get into places adults couldn't, do what he needed me to do, like rewiring a security system."

Ray's infectious smile returned, "You know, in another life, you could've been an electrical engineer."

Alex couldn't hold back her snort. The image of Leonard in a suit, testing new ways to experiment with electricity was enough to keep her laughing for years.

"Dodged a bullet then, even the Girl Scout thinks so." Leonard spoke aloud, "You think I wanna be like you?"

"Eh, Tech Billionaire, three PhDs, eager attitude?" Alex butt in, a smile creeping on her face, "Sounds like an improvement."

Ray shot a grateful look her way, his wide smile returning to his face.

Leonard rolled his eyes, "You spend all your time and money inventing a super-suit and what do you do with it?" There wasn't even a second of answering time before he continued, "Fly around like some incredible shrinking shmuck trying to save the world."

"And I guess Robbing banks is just as important?" Ray shot back, a peek of his personality shining through.

"It's a helluva lot more satisfying that's for sure." Leonard shot back.

Ray's smile dissipated again, "It's that kind of thinking that makes you a criminal."

"No it makes me a survivor," Leonard protested, not wanting to give Ray any satisfaction of getting into his head, "and there's gonna come a day where you wish you were too."

Alex thought about her dad. How he might've survived.

He never would've stood for it, she decided. He was too good.

"You flip the solenoid," Ray announced, flicking a switch amongst the wires, "Saves you the trouble of rewiring the whole thing."

When his words rang true, a small smile wrote itself across Leonard's lips. "Well, what do you know? You were right Girl Scout," he called to her, "Guess Raymond's not so useless after all."

The sirens finally silenced themselves and the lights flickered back to normal. Alex was ready to pry the door open and walk out with the knife unscathed.

"Looks like Rory found the fuse box," Ray thought aloud, standing up from his crouched position.

Mick's voice rose through the parlor, "We got a problem, the owner just came home,"

Alex and Leonard sprang up from their positions, ready to fight their way out.

"And you won't believe who it is," Mick finished, his burly frame pushed from behind the wall, the familiar greasy-haired figure of Vandal Savage holding their teammate hostage.

"So we meet again," His soft voice announced in victory, "Oh I'm grateful for another chance to kill you."

Alex swallowed the lump in her throat, moving closer and wrapping her fingers around the steel cage she found herself trapped in. "We're going to stop you," She spoke with reserved determination, clenching her jaw as Savage moved closer, never taking his gun away from Rory's head.

"We will see about that," He leaned in, as if he had a secret only the two of them knew, "Diana," Savage whispered, bringing his hand to her cheek, whispering her mother's name as his eyes scanned her up and down.

"How do you know that name?" She asked, her carefully controlled tone the only thing keeping her from reaching through the bars and using her rope to strangle him.

"I may have had something to do with that," A high pitched voice rang from behind Savage as footsteps were heard against the wooden floor. Alex felt her back stiffen at the sight of the platinum blonde hair.

"Kali," She spoke, acknowledging the speedster's chosen name and presence. "Long time no see,"

Kali tilted her head, the choppy ponytails swinging back and forth as she approached the cage, "The last time I saw you, I was the one behind bars. Guess times are changing."

Alex pressed her teeth together, a dry smile forced on her face, "Oh when I get out of here you are so dead,"

Kali laughed, the whistling sound piercing the air like a hot kettle, "Funny, I said the exact same thing about you."

Ray looked between the two of them, "Uh, who's-who's this?"

"The Time criminal that Rip recruited me to hunt down" Alex explained, "and an old friend"

Kali placed a hand on her chest in mock fondness, "aw, you think we're friends how cute"

"It won't be cute when the rest of the team shows up to kick your ass," Ray strode forward, radiating confidence.

"Please call them," Savage continued, "I'm looking forward to seeing at least two of them again."

Ray shrunk back into his spot by Alex's side as Snart reached for Mick's comm unit.

"I can't believe Savage knew my mother," Alex spoke aloud.

"Or that he's working with your National City nemesis," Ray contributed, bobbing his head in disbelief, "What's the story with you two anyway?"

She sighed, unable to keep the truth from anyone for much longer, Alex met Ray's curious gaze and crossed her arms, "We used to date."

Ray pressed his teeth together in an awkward expression as he faced back toward the blonde who had been taunting them. "That's awkward."

"Yeah," Alex scoffed, "Tell me about it."

Silence settled over the group, patiently waiting for any members of the team to signify that they had even heard Leonard's call, or at least that they were coming to rescue them.

It wouldn't be that difficult, would it?

Alex wasn't sure she trusted her team to that point.

"Your friends are cowards," Savage's soft voice called from behind the cage, a snide smile on his face.

"They'll be here," Ray spoke assuredly. While she admired his positive attitude, she was sure it was more for his sake than any of the others.

Kali moved forward, "Well then perhaps they need a bit of incentive," She snarled, moving her hand back and forth at a lightning pace, coming too close to killing Mick before a shot of flame impeded Alex's vision.

Kali went flying, and Savage looked up in awe. "The burning man," The man whispered.

"Yeah, that's not all I do," Jax's voice rang through the empty house, drawing their attention upward as he blasted Savage back with a similar blast he landed on Kali before dropping to the ground and helping Mick up.

"Mick!" Alex called, "You okay?"

The bald convict's eyes grew wide, as fiery as the element he loved so much, "I'm pissed."

Alex repressed the urge to smile, moving backward as Jax requested, the bars melting away enough for them to sneak away with the knife hidden up Leonard's sleeve.

The five of them met up with the rest of the team, Rip explaining the plan to the rest of them.

"Guys," Alex nodded behind them, Ray turning around at the sound of her voice, "I think we got company."

"Friends of Savage," Rip pushed his way forward, brandishing his gun and slapping a tiny version of Ray's suit into the scientist's chest, "You'll be needing this, don't lose any pieces of it this time."

Alex flourished her wrist, swinging her sword in a circle before charging forward, dropping low to hit the men where their weak points were.

The sword cut through the flesh like butter, leaving most of its victims wounded or dead. She slammed her foot into the chest of one soldier before pulling her sword out of another's.

A guttural scream rang through the courtyard, drawing her gaze toward the balcony.

"Kendra" Ray murmured beside her.

Alex jumped up, landing on the porch, sword in hand and a newfound sense of determination filling her chest. The woman was leaning over Carter's now incapacitated body, a gaping hole where his heart should be.

Wasting no time, Alex launched forward, steel singing against each other as the bloody knife met her silver blade. His defense was locked in. She needed to catch him off guard and then disarm him, she realized.

She swept her leg at his own, hoping to topple him, but he jumped and launched the dagger in an arc at her chest. She brought her sword up to stop the blade, sparks flying from the contact as she pushed back, using her strength to push him back, her sword leaving a myriad of cuts and scars on Savage's body. He was pressed against the wall.

He was almost ready for the killing blow.

She slammed into the pillar, her strength denting the marble as she gazed into the icy blue eyes of her assailant.

"I don't think so sweetheart," Kali sneered, a silver glint bouncing off the shiny decor in the moonlight.

Savage's dagger.

Alex spoke through heavy breaths, "If you're going to kill me, get it over with."

Kali's lips drew themselves upward in a twisted smile before plunging the knife into Alex's stomach. Pain burst across her gut and The taste of iron filled her mouth before spilling out over her lips, collapsing to the ground, a familiar gleam entering her gaze.

"I don't wanna kill you, darling," Kali's sickly sweet voice hit her ears, amplifying the pain by a hundred, "But I do want you to feel what I feel."

Alex lifted her eyes back to the shiny object on the floor, her vision clearing enough to catch sight of what she had lost in the battle.

Her extrapolator.

A crunching sound was heard as Kali's boot landed on the device.

_"NO!"_ Alex called hoarsely before the woman sped off in a blur.

She remained sprawled out on the floor, never tearing her gaze from the crushed device.

Her way home.

Her only tie to the people she loved.

Cotton filled her ears, drowning out the cries of concern coming from the team.

"Alex?" A voice she thought she recognized as Ray's called, "Alex, come on, we need to get you back to the ship."

Her weight was lifted from the ground, her eyes never leaving the house that had taken her last semblance of hope with her.

Her chance to return home was gone.

Only one thought permeated her mind before she went unconscious.

She was stranded here. With no way home.

For Good.


	3. Blood Ties

She woke up in a field of flowers, the crashing of the waves hitting each of her senses as she moved closer to the cliff, staring down at the clear blue ocean, ready to swallow her whole.

Themyscira was beautiful.

The smells overwhelmed her, wind rushing through her hair as the bright sun shone off her bronze breastplate, golden skirt shimmering whenever she moved.

"How is it possible you're so grown up?" A voice she had only heard in dreams asked, causing her to whirl around.

Brown eyes met blue and Steve Trevor's smile lit up the entire island.

"Dad?" She asked, moving forward. The blades of grass tickled the hair on her legs, sandals barely peeling off the fresh ground beneath her feet. She's been surrounded by cement walls and streets for so long, she almost forgot what the Earth felt like.

The natural ground beneath her feet.

The wind brushing through the curled locks that fell just past her shoulder.

"You look just like your mother," Steve whispered, brushing his hand against her tanned cheek, wiping away a loose piece of hair that had fallen from her half-braid. "You got my smile though." His teeth broke free, finally seeing the coveted expression cross her father's face.

She let a tear drop from the corner of her eye, leaning into the palm of his hand again.

But it wasn't there.

He wasn't there.

"Dad?" She called into the void, circling herself, eyes darting around in earnest, "Dad are you there? Dad? Dad!?"

Ray heard the screams not long after he had brought Alex to the medbay. It was guttural, like she had lost something irreplaceable. When he showed up in the medbay, he found out she had.

"Dad!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice higher than he had ever heard it, "Dad!"

"What happened?" He asked, chest twisting in worry at the sight of one of their best warriors squirming in pain.

"Ms. Prince has had a complication" Stein turned toward him, trying to hold the spastic woman down. It was almost entertaining to watch. The way Alex's strength outweighed the professor's own.

"Ye- I know," Ray replied, annoyance entering his tone, "What sort of complication?"

He held his breath. He had three PHDs, he could help out Stein with a medical problem. He healed himself several times over. He could heal a demigoddess.

She shot up, somehow defying the chemistry of Gideon's sedative.

Ray wouldn't put it past her metabolism.

"He's here!" She yelled, eyes watery from her hysterics. Her fingers latched themselves around Ray's available arm, wild eyes staring into his own. "My Dad's here somewhere, I have to see him."

Her grip loosened as Gideon administered another sedative, the spasms in Alex's body growing shorter, getting slower. Soon the only movement she was making was underneath her eyelids as she entered REM sleep.

"Pieces of the dagger have broken off," Stein explained, pointing at the medical chart, "They are en route to her heart. Her wound has already closed up so we can't operate."

Ray's pulse quickened. His brain worked overtime, trying to discover any other option than what had first popped into his head.

"So what do we do?" He gulped down the lump forming in his throat as he caught glances with Stein.

The Professor stuttered out a half-assed excuse, "The fragments are minuscule, even Gideon isn't capable of neutralizing them."

That horrible idea was back, urging him to try it out. But Ray didn't know if he could do it. If he could save her.

He bit the inside of his cheek, setting his jaw. "Fortunately, there's technology on board that is," Ray stood up straight, facing Stein, "The ATOM suit. I can shrink down, slip into her bloodstream, and use the photon blasters to neutralize the fragments."

The older man stuttered again, gesticulating wildly, "You'd be pushing the suit's limits. We, we should run some tests first, test everything out-"

"This isn't the ivory tower professor," Ray began, his anxiety skyrocketing to an ungodly amount, "We don't have time, Alex could die!"

"Which is why we should be precise-"

"I'm not your student anymore professor-"

Martin finally burst, "You were never my student! If you had been, I would've taught you the principles of scientific analysis, not this...bravado!"

And just like that, everything Ray had been pushing back since reappearing from the dead resurfaced.

He was a failure.

He was unimportant.

He was nothing.

But he was the only one who could save Alex.

"There's no time professor!" Ray spoke through gritted teeth, straightening his spine as he tried to regain some of his confidence, "I'm going in."

She was back in Boston, younger. She could tell because her limbs hadn't caught up with the rest of her yet.

Gangly and lanky, yet somehow able to get Grant McAlister to ask her to homecoming. She blamed Aphrodite's charm that she had blessed the Amazons with.

The rooftop felt good, positive. Like it was where she belonged.

"Your mother loved this view," Steve announced, wrapping his arm around the teenager beside him, her awful side bangs falling in her face, "You're just like her. Kind, compassionate, sharp tongue."

She chuckled at his attempt at a joke, leaning into his side. "I wish I could see the best in people like she did."

It wasn't meant to be said aloud.

It wasn't even meant to be thought.

But now there it was, hanging in the air, minutes before her Dad would disappear again.

She needed answers. She needed to know where he went.

"You do" Steve assured her, his floppy dirty-blonde hair falling in his eyes, "You have the most trusting heart of anyone I've ever met. Alfie, Kara, Thomas, even Snart. You connect with them."

She shook her head, brushing a stray piece of hair from her forehead, "No I don't, I only connect with them because of our shared trauma. If anyone of them knew anything real about me-"

"They'd love you just as much as I do," Steve's hands found themselves cupping her face, his signature before he faded, just like all of the other versions she had come across.

After his disappearance, she stared down at where the street should be.

Instead, there was just an endless whirlpool of crashing waves, waiting to swallow her whole.

She took a deep breath and jumped.

This was a terrible idea. Of course, it was. He didn't know what he was thinking.

"You ready?" Ray asked when all he wanted to do was run as far away from the medbay as possible.

Stein turned toward him, nodding an affirmative, "Yes."

Ray shot a look at the sleeping woman beside him. Her brown waves splayed across the blue seat and her usually serious face serene.

He had to do this.

He had to save Alex.

She was important back on her universe. She was needed on the Legends.

He pressed the button on his chest and shrank, sending a prayer to whatever entity above that he would make it out alive.

Her bloodstream swirled around him, tinting his already dark goggles with red as her blood cells floated past without a care in the world.

If it wasn't for the giant rock headed his way, he never would've guessed she was close to dying.

The blue photons left his hands, smashing the rock into smithereens. The smile left his face as a remnant went crashing into his suit, an awful beeping filling his ears as he waited for what seemed like forever.

Flashes of Anna dying before him invaded his vision.

Sounds of the photons malfunctioning before being declared legally dead rattled his head.

The voices were back, whispering _failure, failure, failure, nothing, nothing, nothing._

He could usually drown them out no problem.

This time he chose to listen to them.

"Professor plot me a course out of here!" Ray yelled in the comms unit, trying to banish the repeating sensations from his nightmares, "I'm losing core containment. Now!"

National City was bustling this time of year. Bright lights and Christmas trees.

All she needed was a cup of peppermint hot cocoa and her Christmas Eve would've been perfect. Just her and Alfie and Kara and several holiday specials from the Danvers home.

She sat at one of the tables, sorting through the papers Alfie had placed on her desk that morning.

He was thinking about buying CatCo, trying to beat out Lena Luthor for the deed.

She hadn't known why until Kara had shown up at his office and ripped into him about him risking his life a few days ago.

She smirked at the memory, taking a sip from her freshly made cup of hot chocolate as she went over the contract, looking for anything that needed to be corrected.

Motion tore her gaze forward and she froze, the paper lid stopping at her lips.

"Mom?" She asked, meeting the wide-eyed stare of the world's savior.

"Hello Alexandra," Diana's accent cut through the air, a soft smile crawling across her face, "I think we need to talk."

Ray sat in the cargo bay, the exact spot he had been in the day before, trying to reconcile his own uselessness to the timestream before Alex and Sara had stepped up to pull him out of his self-pity.

Before they had gone after Savage and almost gotten Alex killed.

"I believe I determined a way to better track the fragments still inside Miss Prince's bloodstream." Stein's voice interrupted his reverie, breaking through the comforting silence Ray had enjoyed, "Next time you'll be better prepared."

He scraped his teeth against his bottom lip before turning back to his suit, "There won't be a next time."

"Can't you fix the suit?"

Ray never took his eyes off his invention, not wanting to discuss his own inadequacies at the moment, "It's not the suit."

"Raymond, you mustn't be discouraged." Stein tried to comfort him, moving closer, "We're- we're scientists. We learn from our failures."

"Alex isn't a lab experiment," Ray exclaimed, the sudden burst of emotion propelling him upward until he towered over Stein again, "she's a person."

Stein's mouth sputtered, "I know, you need to have confidence that this will work."

A mirthless chuckle left his lips, shaking his head back and forth, "Well I don't." The same chorus of _failure, nothing, useless,_ rang in his head, "I can't-I can't save her."

"Based on what evidence?" Stein offered, always thinking like a scientist. Didn't he know what it was like to lose someone you loved? "Are we not empirical thinkers Dr. Palmer? Exactly how many people have you lost?"

Ray's expression became solemn as flashbacks permeated his memory.

The crack of her neck.

The guttural scream he had released.

The helplessness he had felt.

"One." He replied, his body numb as the memories came flooding back.

"Who did you lose?" Stein pushed, not understanding the boundary Ray had set, "Someone close to you? Who was she, Raymond?"

"Y'know, for someone who doesn't remember me," He deflected, not wanting to talk about his dead fiance anymore, "You sure have a lot of personal observations to make."

It was a defense mechanism.

A way to push the people who wanted to know aside.

He had learned that after Felicity and Oliver.

One of the last lessons they had taught him.

Keep the stuff that matters, the trauma, the intrusive thoughts. Keep it all inside.

"Fine," Stein conceded, recognizing that he wasn't getting anywhere, "Don't talk to me, but fix the suit." The shameful look the professor sent him sent his stomach growling in guilt, "It's the only choice that poor girl has."

Ray watched as Stein's figure retreated back into the main hull of the ship, his eyes trained on the spot his former teacher had been before moving back to the suit.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, creasing her eyebrows as she met Diana's forever stoic expression, "I thought you were back on Themyscira."

Diana leaned forward, her red turtleneck standing out amongst the white of the table, "I'm only here because you will it."

"What?"

Her mother's hand intertwined itself with hers, "This isn't real, paidi mou."

She leaned back against the booth she had snuggled herself in, shaking her head back and forth. No, she had seen her father. She had to believe this was real. She had to believe that…

"I'm dying aren't I?"

Diana nodded, a solemn look swirling in her dark eyes as she rubbed her thumb against the watch strap she had given her daughter. "I miss him too."

Alex met her mother's stare, a lone tear trailing down her face as the two women stared at the exit of the coffeeshop, how the waves she had jumped into so many times before were lapping against the edge of the door, ready for her to surrender herself to them once more.

"You have to let him go," Diana urged, pushing a lone strand of hair behind Alex's ear. "It's the only way to move forward."

"I don't want to," Her voice was hoarse, choked up, "I don't want to forget him."

Diana smiled softly, "You won't."

Alex closed her eyes, breathing in and out as she remembered the constructions of her father she created in her mind. The fake conversations they would have, the resentment she harbored toward her mother for being unable to save him.

The resentment she felt toward him for sacrificing himself in the first place.

It was like breathing in new life, expelling what kept her tethered to her old life, allowing her to move forward.

She opened her eyes and National City was gone.

Ray stared at the slowly deteriorating body of his friend, her calm demeanor and still body betraying nothing of her actual circumstances.

She looked as if she was sleeping and not on death's door.

His stomach was eating itself inside out with guilt, pressing against his chest and whispering _murderer, failure, useless._

"I know how it feels." A voice broke through his reverie.

Ray whipped around to face they greying man, trying to seem nonchalant, "What?"

"To have a crisis of confidence." Stein spoke out, still trying to coerce Ray into talking about his past, "As unlikely as that might seem, I know." Stein tried to comfort the other scientist. Ray stared at the man, hoping his face didn't betray the emptiness he felt inside.

"It was 2002." Stein continued, "I was teaching quantum mechanics and I had one particularly gifted student. He was able to solve the Ehrenfest Theorem in less than an hour. He was, quite frankly, the only student in all my years of teaching who ever made me feel inferior."

Ray scoffed inwardly, suddenly realizing where the professor was going with his story, "That student...was you. You were exceptional."

Ray raised his brow skeptically, something tugging at his conscience, "And just like that you remember having me in your class?"

Stein shifted on his feet, a wrinkle on the edge of the mouth twitching, "I always remembered, I just enjoyed taking your ego down a peg or two." His lips perked up and Ray let a chuckle escape his lips.

"Why are you telling me this now?" He asked, something uncomfortable stirring in his gut as he met Stein's eyes.

Stein moved forward, his tone becoming almost disappointed, "Because for the life of me I cannot reconcile that cocksure student I remember with a man who believes he does not have what it takes to save Miss Prince's life. Who did you lose Raymond?"

He fidgeted in his seat, going against every instinct he had built up in his lonely life since coming back from the dead.

Maybe it wouldn't be so sad if someone else knew.

"My fiance, Anna Loring." Ray began, struggling to keep the tears from breaking past his eyes, "She was killed two years ago in a Starling City siege. Right in front of me." The knot in his stomach moved upward, getting caught in his throat as her smiling face flashed across his mind once more, "I couldn't have stopped them. I couldn't do anything. My leg had been broken. I couldn't get to her. I could only watch as they broke her neck."

The voices were back, _useless, nothing, failure_. He's never been a hero. "I built this suit because I promised myself that night that I would never be powerless to save anyone again. So when a fragment broke free and damaged my suit, I...I panicked. Froze." Ray finally admitted, his own insecurity hanging in the air, ready for scrutiny.

He prepared himself for a lecture. For Stein to tell him that it wasn't his fault. That it was survivor's guilt. That he was being irrational.

It never came.

"Raymond," Stein began, his tone softening, "you couldn't save Anna, but you can save Alexandra. I believe it, I...believe in that student." His hand found itself on Ray's arm, the gesture sending something calming washing over him, "And I need him to believe in it too."

Silence hung between the two peers and Ray shot his gaze over to Alex's still body.

The woman who had risked her life for them.

The woman who had gone hand to hand with Savage and almost won.

The woman who, without knowing who he was, gave him a chance.

Her chest rose and fell with steady breaths, and something in his brain went off. The voices shut off and a different phrase rang through his head.

Girl Scout was right, looks like you're not so useless after all.

"Let's do it."

Shrinking down was the easiest part of the operation. As he passed by the cell walls and red blood cells that tinted his vision red, he kept repeating the same phrase over and over in his head.

_You're not useless. You're not useless. You're not useless._

Snart had said it and Alex and Stein had endorsed it. It must be true on some level.

All of his concentration was focused on keeping his head screwed on straight and focused on the mission, he had to resist yelling at the professor whenever he interjected.

"How does Jax put up with having you in his head?" Ray settled on instead, aiming the photon blasters at the meteorite sized rocks propelling his way.

"I believe he finds my presence comforting." Stein protested, clearly not happy with Ray's tone or being accused of being annoying.

"I doubt it." Ray remarked, smirking inwardly as he blasted the penultimate fragment apart, Targeting system's overloaded." He observed, trying to keep the nervousness out of his voice. Trying to keep the intrusive thoughts from returning.

_You're not useless. You're not useless. You're not useless._

"Focus Raymond," Stein's voice came over the comms, bringing him out of his stupor, "Remember it's not the suit, it's you that Alexandra needs right now."

At the sound of her name, he was brought back to the mission at hand. He blasted any remaining pieces, carefully floating through the now empty bloodstream, a victorious cheer heard in his ears.

"Well done," Stein exclaimed, "One more fragment to go."

Ray couldn't stop himself from smiling. He wasn't a failure. He wasn't nothing. He was saving Alex.

"I see it, it's the biggest one yet." He responded, all semblance of nervousness gone as he pressed the blasters again, eliminating every piece, every negative thought dissipating with the steel fragments as he began to chart a course out of Alex's circulatory system.

He landed on solid ground with a bright smile on his face as Stein began to praise him again.

"Well done!" The professor called.

Just as Ray was getting ready to call the Professor out on lying to him, his response was cut off with the sound of a gasp, Alex jumping up from her sleeping position.

"Guess the sedative wore off," Ray thought aloud, moving forward to help stabilize the newly healed warrior.

Alex's dark eyes darted around, unsure of her surroundings. "What the hell happened to me?"

"The knife shards in your bloodstream almost reached your heart," Stein began to explain, "Dr. Palmer eradicated them before they could do any permanent damage."

Her wide gaze met his and he shrugged, taken aback by the innocence that met him. She was always so serious, always so stern and mature.

It was nice to see another part of her.

"Thank you," She whispered, pushing herself out of the chair, ignoring Stein and Ray's own protests.

Her hand went absentmindedly to her decuffed wrists, massaging the old leather watch before her eyebrows shot up and she came to attention.

"My cuffs," She told the two, "I need them."

"You need to sit down," Ray assured her, trying to guide her back to the seat. Alex shook her head, "No, you don't understand, I need my cuffs. I'm dangerous without them."

She latched onto his arms and he swore he could feel the tiniest shake of her body. Her eyes were no longer innocent and questioning, but fearful and...childlike.

It was something he had never seen from her before.

"Ray, please, you don't understand-"

"Hey" Ray interrupted her, placing his still armored hand on her shoulder, "Sit down and rest and I'll go grab them okay?"

She nodded, complying with his instructions while he left the room, his mind reeling from the state he had found her in.

He didn't think much could frighten an Amazon.

So what did?

She couldn't stop rubbing her wrists.

Her bare wrists.

If she was without them too long her power would start to leak out. It would start small.

An irritating eyeroll here and there. A rude comment every once in a while.

But soon it would get out of control.

She could destroy the whole ship. She forced herself to breathe in deep breaths and focus on something else. Anything else.

The mission.

Kendra had come by to visit her after hearing that she was awake. Mostly to tell Stein about the vision she had of Rip and Sara in trouble, but she appreciated the girl checking in on her anyway.

They were cut from the same cloth. Demi goddesses with amazing power that could potentially destroy the world.

So why did something rub her the wrong way about the former barista? Her hands rubbed against the watch and she forced the lump in her throat back down into her stomach.

Her dad was gone.

Dead.

There was no way he could've come back even if he wanted to.

Her mom was right.

She had to let him go.

"Here you go!" Ray's cheerful voice rang through the empty medbay, now back in his regular clothes, the silver bracers shining in his hands, "One pair of magical Grecian cuffs as ordered."

Alex forced a small smile on her face as she slid her wrists through the bracers, relaxing once they were snug around her wrists.

She felt a pair of eyes on her and met Ray's curious gaze.

"Why do you need them?" He asked.

"What?" She stammered, caught off guard by his question.

"Your bracelets," Ray gestured to the cuffs surrounding her wrists, "You said you need them. I just...wanna know why."

Her eyes narrowed as she swung her legs around to face the man who had saved her life, "Why do you wanna know?" suspicion was clear in her tone, for good reason. These bracers were her lifeline. If anyone wanted to know what they were to her-

"You told me that I don't understand," Ray repeated, moving closer before shrugging, "I want to."

A tense silence stood between the two, Alex weighing her options.

She was supposed to be a part of a team.

That meant trusting others. Who better than the man who had just saved her from death?

"They keep my power reigned in," She exhaled, the confession relieving several weights from her chest, "When I turned ten, I had this weird explosion of power." She began to explain, "It only came out when I was sad, or angry and after finding out about my dad…" She trailed off, the ending statement implied. Alex shook her head free of the thought, "Anyway, that's when my mom took me to Themyscira. She put the bracelets on me and I've worn them ever since."

Ray nodded, his expression growing sympathetic as he put all the pieces together.

"So if you go too long without them-"

'-I could blow up the whole ship" She finished, biting her lip in embarrassment. She hated telling people. Not just because it could be used against her, but because of how people looked at her afterward. Like she was a bomb ready to go off any minute.

Ray didn't look at her like that though. His smile was sympathetic, his eyes holding only curiosity.

"I'm, uh, I'm sorry about your dad." He chose to change the subject, stuffing his hands in his pockets, "If it's any consolation, you're not the only person on this ship who has lost someone."

Alex nodded, her soft smile pulling at her lips, "Who'd you lose?"

Ray sighed before joining her on the seat, his long legs stretched out before him as he clasped his hands together, "Her name was Anna. She was...amazing."

"You really loved her huh?" Alex asked, hoping she wasn't being too forward with her questions. Ray nodded, his smile disappearing into a frown, water gathering at the edge of his eyes.

"Yeah, I did."

She had seen that look on her mother's face so many times, she knew what it meant. He had lost someone irreplaceable. So had she.

All she could do was place her hand on his knee in a gesture of silent comfort, he reached over to cover her hand with his, the two sitting together in solidarity as they stared into the empty medbay.


	4. White Knights

Somehow breaking into the pentagon was easier than she expected. Sara was taking the lead, the eighties more likely to be kinder to her than Alex or Kendra.

She forced herself to remain focused on the mission, trying to forget that her mother was walking around somewhere on this Earth.

That she was off saving the world just like her daughter.

They swiped the key off of Leonard without incident and she caught the glance Ray was throwing her way. She shot a soft smile back at him before following Sara and Kendra to the file room.

They were almost free when Kendra decided to go berserk.

Alex sent a swift kick to the chest of the man who was blocking their way forward. A swipe of her fist and a knee to the gut and they should've been home free.

Except Kendra's eyes burned red and her wings expanded.

"Uh, guys." Sara responded over the comms, "We have a problem."

"Kendra!" Alex yelled, grabbing the possessed woman's attention, "Enough!"

The girl soared her way, and Alex caught her foot before it could collide with her face. She twisted, her strength matched by whatever power lay dormant in the half-hawk woman.

Kendra collided to the ground, her anger stirred by the act.

Alex clenched her jaw, ready to meet her adversary again. Unfortunately, she wasn't the target.

Kendra launched herself forward at the guards approaching them. Alex sprinted at an unnatural pace, positioning herself in front of the gathering crowd as a burst of flame spurted out of the now damaged pentagon.

"Kendra, this isn't you!" Alex called. Her words were cut off by the screech that filled her ears. Setting her jaw, Alex pulled up her sleeves and clanged her bracelets together, sending a wave of energy forward, decimating everything in its path and knocking the demi goddess out.

When they got back to the Waverider, Alex braced herself for another lecture.

"Instead of dwelling on what went wrong, let's focus on the positive" Ray spoke up before they got scolded. While she admired his optimism, this was not the time for it.

This time they deserved to be lectured.

"Look, we got the file on Savage," Kendra spoke up, finally recovering from her power trip and Alex's blast.

Martin turned to Jax, his tone disapproving, "despite the problem with the alarm?"

"Oh so now it's my fault?" Jax grew defensive, eager to prove himself to the older scientist.

" You have access to 60 years of knowledge and experience," Stein continued to argue, causing Alex to roll her eyes, "Why not just take advantage of that?"

Jax pressed forward, upset with Stein's new attitude, "Because it's my body on the line out there, not yours."

Sara stepped in to be the mediator and Alex watched the interaction, knowing that she would only make things worse, "Hey, it's not your fault."

The blonde turned toward Kendra, "Everything would have been fine if Big Bird over here hadn't freaked out."

The Egyptian demigoddess scoffed, "Excuse me?"

Sara crossed her arms, "If it wasn't for Alex's magical wave of energy, you would've killed several people."

The two women moved closer to each other, ready to spar at any moment.

"Hey!" Alex called, stepping between the two, "Enough. There is plenty of blame to go around."

"Now, fortunately," Rip finally stepped in to mediate the conversation, "Gideon was able to generate a low-end EMP, which erased all the Pentagon's magnetic media."

Ray crossed his arms, a wary look in his eye, "Like security footage?"

Rip nodded, pressing a few buttons on the main console before facing the rest of the team, "Look, you're just lucky that the Department of Defense likes to keep incidents like this under wraps." He turned toward the front of the ship, "Gideon, any luck with our purloined secret file? Please say yes."

"Yes, Captain." Gideon chimed, her pleasant voice echoing through the ship, "According to the Pentagon, Savage has defected to the Soviet Union."

Alex rolled her eyes before sharing a cautious look with Sara, Stein's musings saying what they were all thinking, "So the most powerful evil the world has ever known has just gone red at the height of the Cold War."

Ray placed his hands on the console, taking a good look at the records Gideon had pulled up, "And now he's gonna help them cook up something that kills the future."

"Gideon," Rip called, settling back into the Captain's chair, "Set a course...for the Soviet Union"

****  
Metal clanged through the hallways, grunts and hisses heard as the sticks clanked against each other in the makeshift training room.

"You know using your super strength is cheating right?" Sara heaved, a sly smile on her face as she met Alex's unflinching gaze. The Amazon ducked before spinning on her knees to land a kick to the assassin's calf, barely missing the muscle as Sara's leg swung to meet Alex's bracelet.

"So is using these" Alex smirked, pulling out several knives hidden in the pocket of her pants. She pushed Sara's leg away from her face and went for another blow, meeting Sara's own pair of blades.

"So," Alex gasped, focusing in on the woman's tactics, "What's got you needing to spar?"

Sara pushed her back, annoyance emanating from the usually collected fighter, "Rip wants me to train Kendra." She blocked another incoming kick, "He thinks it'll be good for both of us."

"Of course he does," Alex heaved, thrusting her leg forward, the assassin barely dodging it, "He thinks this can help tame the monster inside both of you."

Sara paused, meeting her friend's stare, "What?" She asked breathlessly. Alex ceased, reaching for a bottle of water before the sound of metal filled the room again.

"I know about the pit Sara," She explained, leaping sideways to avoid the sweeping blade coming her way, "I know about the effects it has. That's why Rip wants you to train Kendra."

Her silver stick touched Sara's neck and she tilted her head victoriously, "I win."

Sara shoved the stick away and they moved toward the bench, "Only because you caught me off guard with that insinuation."

The two women sat there, breathless as they wiped their faces with the towels Gideon had fabricated for them, water cooling their sweaty bodies.

"For the record, I think you should do it." Alex admitted, trying to cheer the girl up, "You've made me a better fighter since meeting you, if anyone can tame the hawk goddess, it's you."

Sara stared off into space, downing water before standing up to meet Alex's gaze, "Fine, I'll do it. But you're helping me."

Alex let a chuckle escape her lips before grasping the blonde's hand, pulling herself up to her full height.

"Heads-up," Sara called to the other girl, tossing her a spare staff. Alex walked in tandem beside her, a smile on her face.

Kendra turned to the both of them, eyebrows creased in confusion, "What the hell is this?"

"Warriors train every day," Alex announced, recalling the old adage her mother used to tell her back on the island.

Kendra scoffed, turning back to the pile of scraps she had been sorting, "Sorry, but I'm not in the mood."

Sara and Alex exchanged a skeptical look before the former moved closer, "Sorry" is not gonna help that guard that you defaced at the Pentagon." she explained.

Kendra whipped back around to face them, "Two months ago, I was a barista." She explained, "I had no idea I had some psycho hawk goddess inside of me, and then I meet Carter, and he convinces me to let her out, and now that he's gone I can't control it," Alex wanted to roll her eyes at the makeshift sob story, "So thanks for the offer, but I won't risk letting that monster out again." She tossed the staff back to Sara, who had a quick retort for the girl.

"That monster inside you is not gonna go away." Alex moved closer, following the woman's lead. "You have to learn how to control her." The Amazon finished.

Kendra sighed, a skeptical look in her eye as she met Sara's gaze again, "And how, exactly, do you expect me to do that?"

Sara and Alex shared another look again before tossing the staff back to Kendra, who caught it with ease, "Let's find out."

Kendra brought her staff to meet the arcing blows of Sara and Alex working in tandem, pushing the hawk goddess back before landing a kick to her chest, sending the untrained woman catapulting back into the hallway, the other two women sending blow after blow, the sound of metal ringing in the nearly empty halls. They continued for several minutes, Kendra barely able to dodge the kicks and punches sent her way.

If she dodged a blow from Alex, Sara would land one and vice versa. She had long abandoned the staff, choosing to try and land blows the old-fashioned way. All that ended up doing was leaving her open to being pinned against the wall.

"Are we done here yet?" Kendra choked out, clearly fatigued from the training. Alex never felt more alive.

"If you want to harness your power, you need to learn to control your fear" She advised, Sara nodding along with her as they continued to launch kicks and punches at the woman. Kendra reeled, coughing from impact.

"Yeah, well, you've been training for half your life to be some cold-blooded assassin and a warrior princess," Kendra shot back, her anger starting to get the best of her, "So I really don't think you understand what it's like."

Alex stepped aside, letting Sara take the lead as she retreated back into the hallway, gesturing for the two women to fight alone.

"Before you can control it," Sara started, pressing forward, Kendra barely dodging the roundhouse Sara sent her way, "You have to accept that it's part of you."

Kendra's back rammed into the steel wall again, a groan of pain escaping her lips.

"Ease up, will you?"

"You've got to channel your anger," Sara said, no sign of stopping.

"Sara, stop." Alex advised, noticing how fatigued Kendra appeared, "I think she gets it."

The blonde refused to listen, her fist colliding with the darker woman's jaw, "Push down your emotions." She implored, "Focus on your opponent." Sara's kick sent Kendra flying, the woman's only saving grace the wings that popped out of her back, catching the air and allowing her to slide gracefully across the floor of the ship, her eyes glowing red as she let out a shriek.

"Kendra?" Sara and Alex whispered at the same time. But the other woman didn't respond.

Instead, her wings carried her forward, sneakers landing squarely in the assassin's chest before sending her flying into the back wall.

"Sara!" Kendra called, her wings retracting as she turned back to normal. Alex ran over to try and help her friend get back on her feet. "Sara, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry-"

Something cold clouded Sara's eyes as she leaped forward, her hands engulfing Kendra's throat in a vice-like grip, no signs of letting go.

"Sara, what are you doing?" Kendra choked out, her words having no effect, "It's me!"

Alex rammed her palms into the shoulders of the blonde, pinning Sara against a wall as she forced the bloodthirsty assassin to confront her demons rather than push them aside.

"Sara!" Alex called, her voice calm as she stared into the cold eyes of the woman before her, "You need to calm down,"

Sara struggled against Alex's superstrength, trying to weasel her way free. Alex moved her leg against the woman's thigh, keeping her pinned against the hallway as Kendra watched in awe.

"I understand what you're going through," Alex implored, heavy breaths filling the air between them, "And you cannot let it consume you. Spar, drink, scream into a pillow, but do not let it take what humanity you have left."

Slowly, the ice drained out of Sara's eyes as her body relaxed under Alex's grip, the girl returning to normal before pushing the Amazon away from her and running toward the bathroom, leaving her partners staring at the empty spot she once stood.

Alex huffed and strode off to her room, ready to sleep off the exhaustion of the day. She hadn't gotten any sleep since the events at Savage's house.

She was too afraid she would see her father again.

That her mother wouldn't be there to save her this time.

The only comfort she had was the fact that everyone on this ship had lost someone, even Mick and Snart. The door to her room hissed open and she was surprised to find someone else already standing in the middle of the barely furnished bedroom.

"Oh hey, Alex!" Ray's bright voice called to her, waving wildly as she treaded carefully into her quarters.

"Hey, Ray," Alex spoke, her tone cautious, "What uh, what are you doing in my room?"

The tall man set down one of the only things she had placed in the room before sticking his hands in his pants pockets and walking over to her, his tux abandoned for his simple polo and khakis.

"Rip, uh sent me here to recruit you for the mission to help Stein." He admitted, a shy look on his face replacing his usual smile, "And I wanted to see if you were okay."

She nodded, biting the inside of her cheek as she pushed past Ray's figure, "I'm doing alright, under the circumstances,"

Ray nodded, "Yeah, I know how you feel," He spoke up, his gaze landing on the untouched bed. "Have you not been sleeping?"

Alex shook her head, trying to shove the shame down into her stomach, "I'm afraid I'm gonna see…"

"Your dad."

She nodded, leaning against the bed frame, her hands gripping the metal like she was holding on for her life. Ray moved forward, a soft smile on his face as he met her nervous gaze.

"If you want, I could see about maybe inventing something that would make sleeping easier, I know I had a hard time after Anna."

Alex's lips twitched upward at the request, something akin to warmth bursting in her chest at Ray's selflessness. "Thank you, Ray," She told him, placing a hand on his shoulder, "But I'll get over this."

She moved to grab her lasso, sword and shield, the metal clanking against the Amazon armor her mother had commissioned for her.

"You know, I think after last time," Ray interjected, "It might be good for you to have some protection. Plus, I think you'd look good in it."

And just like that, the warmth spread through her chest like the smile across her face, eyes flickering downward as she watched Ray's figure retreat from the room. She stole one last glance at the red armor before sighing and giving into the temptation.

She forgot how well it fit.

Sliding the blue jacket over her bare shoulders, she secured the shoulder strap of her sword before buckling her armored boots over her knees.

"Damn," Snart's voice called to her as she joined them in the cargo bay, "You clean up good Girl Scout,"

She smiled sarcastically before landing a playful punch to the shoulder, meeting Ray's awed gaze. He handed her a lab coat, explaining her cover story as she followed Stein outside into Soviet Territory, his eyes never leaving her frame.

"Like what you see Raymond?" Snart's voice entered his ears and pulled him from his stupor.

Ray whipped his head to meet Snart's suggestive gaze, "What?" He scoffed, "No, I don't-I don't, It's not-Shut up."

Snart shot him a sly smile before following Stein and Alex into the night, "Whatever you say boy scout."

Alex strode forward, following Snart and Stein with a commanding presence, her mouth sealed shut as Stein approached the guard, her glare fixed on the man."I'm Dr. Gregor Gavrilov of the State Council of Science, and I'm here to inspect the facility." Stein explained. The guard nodded them forward and Stein's voice was heard through the comms, "I'm in and heading to the basement."

Alex trailed the scientist, her eyes darting back and forth for any sign of trouble. Tossing her lab coat aside, she kept watch while Stein attempted to break into the facility.

"Here's hoping the key that stole off Valentina works." He wondered aloud, a beep filling the air between them before the light shone green and they pushed open the door. Thousands of bodies lay shrouded in white, steam hissing from the giant pipe that lined the entire area. Something in Alex's stomach lurched.

"What the hell?" She mused quietly, dragging her hand over the white shrouds, feeling the atrophied muscle and flesh of failed experiments.

Of human lives lost.

"Oh, my God." Stein mumbled, flipping through a packet left behind on one of the desks, "I know what Vostok is working on." Alex moved to take a glance at the papers, formulas beyond her understanding written out for everyone to see, designs of an eerily familiar human body spread across several pages, "She's trying to build me."

Rip's tinny voice rang through her comm unit, "What do you mean?"

Stein gazed on in horrified wonderment, flipping through the pages once more, "I mean, Savage has spent the last decade trying to level the arms race against our team. Operation Svarog. Slavic God of fire, of course."

Alex turned toward the scientist, creasing her eyebrows in worry, "He and Vostok are building a Soviet Firestorm." She stated, finally understanding the gravity of the situation. The sound of steam hissing drew their attention to the end of the room, where a hexagonal chamber awaited, housing a glowing red ball. Stein let out an incredulous laugh.

"They've already built a thermal core." He announced, reverence filling his tone as he approached the chamber, Alex's hand went to lasso, ready to stop the professor from entering if need be.

"Professor," Rip came to the rescue, "Need I remind you, this is a reconnaissance mission."

But Stein was adamant, "I'm not leaving without it. It's the key to building others just like me."

Alex turned to stop him, but it was too late. Stein had already entered the chamber.

He had already exposed himself to enough radiation to kill him.

But he was alive.

The mission was going by too slowly. Alex had turned her comms off to let Stein and Jax work out what problems they had and it was only when the chamber filled with red that she turned it back on.

"Raymond, what's going on? The core just went back online." Stein commented. Alex sighed and decided to ask the man herself.

"Ray?"

"Sorry, Professor," Ray's voice shook as he answered, "I had to do it."

A commotion shook Alex out of her anger at the young doctor and she pulled her sword free from the strap on her back.

"Guys," She warned, "I think the Soviets have caught on."

She readied her shield, several bullets bouncing off the disc as she slid forward, tearing through the group with ease, the first wave over before anyone could sound the alarm.

"I-I can still remove it," Stein's voice rang through her comms, a determined shake heard in his tone, "I just hope I can absorb the excess power."

"Stein don't!" Alex called, the same time Ray began to admonish the professor,

"No. Do you have any idea the kind of energy that-"

His voice was replaced by silence and another wave of soldiers was heard echoing through the halls of the facility. She steeled herself for another fight as they began to surround the chamber, ready to fire whenever the person in charge told them too.

A bright red glow began to emanate from the chamber, the sound of cocking guns replacing the tense quiet that had surrounded them before.

Alex couldn't help the lump growing in her throat, nor the knot of worry forming in her stomach.

There were too many of them.

Even for her.

The glow disappeared almost as fast as it had appeared and she ducked behind the chamber, shielding herself from arrest. Shame settled over her as she tossed a look upward, a Russian voice interrupting their mission.

"Professor Stein, your comrade here tells me you know quite a bit about this project of mine," Valentina smirked, a gun held at Leonard's neck, "Very good. You and I have much to discuss."

Alex heard the sound of metal against cement and her mind lit up. He had dropped the core.

"Mr. Snart, Miss Prince, can you hear me?" Rip implored, desperation rife in his voice, "Do not let Vostok leave with that thermal core."

The sound of gunshots rang out as red and blue fought against the troops on the upper bridge. Alex pushed herself free of her shelter and used her shield to block the incoming barrage, sliding underneath the attack to grab hold of the metal case that held the core, spinning up on her knees to impale a guard in the chest before shoving another away with her shield. A kick flew into the stomach of another as she dodged several more bullets, using her bracelets to keep as many as she could away from her.

She leaped upward, her boots clanging on the grated bridge before her, slicing her way through the second wave of soldiers, a bright blue light taking out a good number of soviets as she locked eyes with Snart.

"Now might be a good time to send in reinforcements." Leonard remarked into the comms, following Alex back toward the exit, "Mick and Stein just got pinched by the Russkies."

She moved back toward the control room, Snart's hand wrapping itself around her bicep, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I'm getting Ray," She explained, tearing her arm out of his grip, "Something happened to him back there, and I'm going to help him."

Leonard let out a huff of irritation, "Raymond is probably with Mick and Stein right now,"

"All the more reason to go after him,"

"You're gonna have to get out of there right now." The Captain interrupted their argument, making their decision for them. "I'm afraid our only option is retreat."

"A warrior does not retreat," Alex berated him, recalling her mother's words.

"They do when there is a bigger mission at stake," Rip began to argue.

Thankfully Snart was on her side, "What about my partner?" He asked, blasting several more soldiers while covering Alex's escape.

"We don't leave anyone behind!" Alex supported, unable to believe that this was the right course of action.

"Until we devise our next move, Mr. Rory, Dr. Stein, and Dr. Palmer will have to fend for themselves." Rip implored, his tone insensitive and cold, "Remember the mission. If the Soviets get that thermal core back, your partner will not be the only one who dies."

Alex and Leonard shared a nervous look before nodding, the two on the same page as they made a break for it, tearing through the soldiers before exiting the facility in haste, explosions ringing out behind them as the Waverider picked them up, the two unable to reconcile with the fact that they had left their friends behind.

But Alex made herself a promise. She would break them out if it was the last thing she did.


	5. Fail Safe

_**Notes: sorry this chapter sucks, I just needed this arc done and over with. thanks for the love!**_

She wrapped the lasso around her hand.

Once. Twice.

She unwrapped it and began the cycle over again.

It helped her keep her centered, something her mom had taught her all those years ago on the island. The lasso guides us. It leads up where we need to go.

Alex wasn't sure she believed her mother's words, but she supposed it was better than nothing. The methodical rhythm of her hands against the warmth of the golden rope calmed her down before missions.

It was her meditation.

And it was now being broken by the sound of Leonard's grating voice.

"So you ditched the armor huh?"

Alex blew a strand of hair away from her eyes, tucking the stray behind her ear as she hooked the lasso to her side. "Yeah, I felt wearing red, yellow, and blue didn't exactly scream covert mission."

She caught the barest glimpse of a smirk as he leaned against the door, his eyes narrowed at the woman standing before him.

"That's too bad," Snart replied, "I'm sure Raymond would've appreciated seeing you in it as you saved him."

Alex scoffed at the insinuation, pulling her jacket over her shoulders again, "This mission is about Stein, not your partner and Ray."

Leonard didn't buy it.

"Right, that's why you tore into Rip earlier" Snart commented, lifting his brow in a teasing gesture, "It was for your general love for Stein and not because you wanted to get Boy Scout back?"

She pressed his gun into his chest, staring him down as a tense air settled over them.

"Our priority is saving Stein and the future" She emphasized, "If that means leaving Ray and Mick behind, then I'm doing it."

She shoved the guilt down into her gut, ignoring the voice in her head that wanted to protest her declaration. She couldn't allow herself to get distracted, not even by one of her friends.

"You ready?' Sara asked, pushing a knife into her side pocket. Alex nodded, adjusting the strap of her sword as the door of the Waverider opened to allow them outside.

"Alright," Rip began, taking charge. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Alex, Sara you go after Stein, do not let him get in that lab."

She nodded curtly, Leonard and her rolling the gurney down toward the lab, a hushed conversation passing between the assassin and crook as they rounded the corner.

"How does it feel to be dead again?" She heard Leonard tease the blonde and she shot him a look.

"Would you two shut up please?" She begged, trying to keep her composure, "Take the next left."

They did as she was told, fighting their way through the reluctant guards with relative ease as they tied them up in the closet next to them.

"Okay," Sara breathed, "This duct should take us to solitary, we just need to get to Stein-"

"Yeah, I'm not going" Leonard dropped on the both of them. Alex whipped her head around in frustration.

"What the hell?" She raced after him, catching him before he left.

Leonard shared a look with her, "Last chance to come with Girl Scout" He explained, a cocky look in his blue eyes.

"I told you," She began, "My priority is the mission."

"And Mine's Mick."

He cocked his gun, turning his back on the two women.

Sara's anger burst out of her, "So much for your code, crook!" She called after him.

"Anytime assassin!" He shot back, "Don't worry Princess, I'll tell lover boy you say hi."

Alex bit her cheek in frustration before following Sara down the duct.

"What's happening?" Rip's tinny voice rang in their ears, Alex pressing her body against the wall before sliding out, her bracers colliding against one another, sending the guards spiraling. But Stein was nowhere to be seen.

"We couldn't rescue Stein," Sara replied breathlessly.

Rip's tone turned serious, all sense of caution gone. "Well if that's the case…"

Alex turned around, meeting Sara's weary gaze, "I know what I have to do" The assassin replied.

Alex shook her head, trying to encourage her friend to stay her hand.

"Sara!" She called after the blonde, watching the woman disappear behind the door, leaving her alone in the hallway.

She stared down the corridor Leonard had traversed earlier. She inhaled deeply before grasping her sword from it's sheath, hoping she didn't regret this decision.

The door to the jail swung open, her boot breaking open the lock, a stunned look crossing the two criminals' faces as she probably awoke the rest of the prisoners.

"Well, what do you know?" Leonard teased, "Princess has a heart of gold after all."

"Shut up" She replied, shutting down his smirk as she tossed an unconscious Ray over her shoulders, "We have to go, now."

That was enough to get the men moving.

They were halfway down the hallway when the power went off, electronic locks released every criminal in the gulag.

"We're dressed as guards," Mick observed, something akin to fear written across his face.

Alex and Leonard shared a look before he offered the only order she would ever take from him.

"This is the part where we run."

They sprinted, her foot smashed into an inmate's face as they skidded to a stop at the intersection.

"Take Ray and Mick to the jumpship" Leonard instructed. Alex nodded, a worried look on his face as she and Mick watched Snart disappear down another hallway.

"Come on," She urged, feeling Ray's body stir atop her shoulders as they traveled down the winding hallways, Mick covering her escape from behind.

The jumpship awaited them across a field of rabid inmates, each one determined to make their escape from the hellhole Mick and Ray had been locked up in for the past few days.

She ducked teeth and punches while a fire raged behind her, lighting up the criminals and forging an available path for her to use.

She tightened her grip around Ray's waist and pushed herself up, soaring over the mix of Russian guards and criminals before landing in front of the jumpship, her legs shaking from impact.

Red flames entered her vision and Mick appeared from the smoke, following her to safety. She strapped a half-conscious Ray Palmer into the seat next to Mick and pushed herself into the pilot's seat, hoping her father's skills were genetic.

They were.

Although Gideon did most of the work.

When they docked at the Waverider, she exhaled loudly, turning to face the now conscious Ray and dizzy Mick.

"Everyone okay?" She asked, trying to ignore the stupid question she had just asked. Ray nodded, while the sound of Mick's puke against the floor of the ship filled the air between them. A soft chuckle escaped her lips, relief coursing through her as she met Ray's bruised face.

"Come on" She stood up, grabbing hold of the two men, "We need to get both of you to Gideon."

Later, the bridge was back to a cheery atmosphere as the rest of the team clinked their glasses together in a toast.

"Thanks for saving me," Ray's voice brought her back down to Earth, a slight tinge of pink mixing with the cuts that scattered his face like constellations.

Alex smiled softly before taking a seat on the arm of the chair he had collapsed in, "It was the least I could do, boy scout."

The quip brought another wide smile to his face, a chuckle leaving his parted lips at the sound of the nickname.

"Well here's to you," Ray lifted his glass, "Princess."

She tucked a small piece of hair behind her ear, her smile growing wider at the tender way he had spoken her title.

They were quickly pulled out of their moment as the Waverider shook, her body almost launching into Ray's lap. She stabilized herself using the back of the chair before standing up, looking to Rip and Sara for an explanation.

"What was that?" The assassin asked.

Gideon's voice came over the monitor, "We have been struck with an explosive particle"

"No kidding," Alex heard Ray whisper under his breath. She helped him up as Rip instructed everyone to strap in.

She pulled the restraint over her head, barely paying attention to the conversations being exchanged across from her.

She heard the words Chronos and Timestream and that was enough for her to put two and two together.

"Initiating evasive maneuvers" Rip announced, spinning the ship around to avoid the impeccable aim of Chronos' technology.

Ray groaned next to her, fingers wrapping around her own as the ship began to shake again.

"Vodka was a bad choice," He announced, his grip growing tighter.

She resisted the urge to laugh as they continued forward, the missile causing the ship to spark and screams to ring out.

"Sir" Gideon's voice cut through the chaos, "We've just been knocked out of the time stream"

"What does that mean?" Kendra called from across the bridge.

Rip didn't waste any time beating around the bush, "It means we're crashing in place and time."

They crawled out of the Waverider when they landed, Alex immediately canvasing the area for anything that could surprise them. Her eyes darted from place to place, the ruins looking eerily familiar to her.

"That looks like a Palmer Tech building," Ray observed, pointing upward at the glowing beacon in the sky. Alex tilted her head up to see where Ray was pointing to, but instead of his name lit up across the top, elegant letters spelled a much shorter name that shone across the city.

"This is Star City," Sara whispered, breathless from the realization.

Ray whipped around to face Rip, "I thought you said the timeline was safe"

Rip checked what tech he had brought with him, "Star City was intact in 2016, this is...2046."

Alex had little time to comprehend that new bit of information before an arrow found itself at her feet, stopping the group in their tracks.

"Don't Move!" A deep voice commanded, drawing another arrow in their direction. Alex lifted her hands up, knowing who they were up against. But this time he was joined by another figure by his side, bo staff in hand.

"Oh thank god," Sara breathed, moving closer. The bow grew taut.

"I said Don't move!" The deep voice commanded again. The figure beside him drew his staff at the group.

Sara stumbled back, "It's me, it's Sara."

Ray pushed forward, stepping in front of Alex and Sara, his arm outstretched, "Look, Oliver, I know it's been a long time, but don't you remember that Rip Hunter recruited us to become legends?"

A pause hung in the air as the Legends shot a nervous look at each other, their fates placed in the hands of an elderly Oliver Queen.

The mysterious figure spoke one phrase which dashed all her hopes, 'I've never heard of any Legends."


	6. Star City 2046

"Get Back!" Ray yelled, pushing Alex behind him as the two of them cowered behind a stray piece of debris.

Gunshots rang out and Alex whipped her head around to face the source of the sound.

Ray's body pressed against hers, their hiding space growing smaller as arrowheads pierced through the metal dangerously close to their faces.

"That can't be Oliver," Ray whispered beside her, their shoulders rubbing against each other. Alex let out a mirthless chuckle, "Sure shoots arrows like him," she quipped, ducking out from behind the debris and lifting her shield up, deflecting the blows with the enhanced defense.

"Come on!" She yelled, gesturing toward the Waverider.

Sara was the first to follow, ushering the others while Alex's lasso flashed back and forth, deflecting bullets and arrows alike as she shuffled backward before disappearing behind the closing door, ensuring her safety.

"That was badass," Sara breathed, offering her hand up for a high five. Alex slapped her palm against the assassin's while the rest of the group filed onto the bridge.

The two of them walked in just as Ray was grilling Rip about the changes to Star City.

" You've all seen how the timeline is malleable... in flux, until it is set," Rip explained, gesticulating to emphasize his point, "Well, this future is not set."

Alex rolled her eyes. She was getting real tired of Rip's vague warnings.

"Remember when I told you it was dangerous for any of you to know too much about your own futures? Well, the events that you dread could very well come to be due to your actions to prevent them."

Alex pressed forward, "So you're telling us that we can't try and save Star City because we might cause this future indirectly?"

Rip Nodded**, "**Believe me when I tell you that the best thing for yourselves and for this mission is to make the repairs to the Waverider here in 2046 then head back to your own time and make sure that none of this ever comes to be."

Alex tried to push the shot of irritation stirring in her stomach as Kendra and Ray conversed over the channel.

"Is there anything you can't manage to put a positive spin on?" Kendra's soft voice rang in her ear.

Ray let out a soft sigh before quipping, "The DMV"

Alex had to push the smile from her face as she went back to her task, ignoring the outburst coming from Stein and Jax as she carefully began to piece the broken bits of Rip's extrapolator back together.

"They're bothering you too huh?" Jax's voice pulled her vision forward, where she met the annoyed expression in his dark eyes. Alex nodded, blowing a soft raspberry as she continued to examine the broken pieces before her.

"Although, I'm guessing my reasons are different than yours," She quipped, clearly able to see the attraction the kid harbored for Kendra. She couldn't blame him.

Jax sighed before playing with his hands, the twenty-year-old twiddling with a small part of the ship as the two sat in silence.

"It's just-" Jax began, breaking the quiet, "I thought it would be easier, y'know after hearing about her time with Cisco and everything."

Alex's mouth twisted to the side, "Look, I don't know too much about Kendra," She began, trying to figure out a way to comfort the kid in front of her, "But from what I gather, she was interested in Cisco back when she was a barista. Before all of...this" She gestured to the time ship surrounding them, "I don't think she's looking for something that reminds her of what her life used to be"

Jax nodded, slipping the device into his coat pocket as a defeated look crossed his face. He was halfway out of her room when she called after him.

"Hey!" Alex's voice brought his gaze back to her, "For the record, you're about as far from Carter as one could get, so when she's ready, I'm sure she'll go straight for you."

Jax sent her a soft smile, the light chuckle leaving his lips, "Thanks Alex," He paused for second before drawing his attention to the broken extrapolator in her hand, "You know, we're in a future version of Star City," He pointed out, "Who says Smoak Technologies doesn't have one of those on hand?"

The door hissed shut as Jax's figure faded from her sight. She bit her lip in concentration as she considered his words.

He was right.

Wasting no time, she pulled the armor on and grasped her sword and shield. She fingered the small pieces of the device before shoving them into her jacket.

The door hissed open and she whipped around, "Hey Alex, do you think you could help me with-"

Ray froze at the sight before him. His eyes took in the armor she was wearing, the sword gripped in her hand and the determined look in her face. "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" her tone was clipped, not wanting to talk about her plans as she pushed forward, "I'm going to help Sara and Rip find Oliver"

Her movement was halted by Ray's hand wrapping around her bicep, his worried look the only reason she didn't pin him against the wall. Furrowing his brows, he set the tablet he had been carrying on the side table before reaching into her pocket with his other hand, unfurling her fist to reveal the extrapolator.

His expression flashed from worry to disappointment as he caught sight of the device, "You can't be serious."

"I am" She responded, ripping her arm out of his grip. Ray retaliated by blocking the door. She ground her teeth together, "Look, I like you, Ray, so please don't make me dislocate your arm in an attempt to do this,"

"This isn't the way to get home Alex," Ray tried to appeal to her, "This is putting yourself in a vulnerable position that might get you killed."

Alex bit her lip, shaking her head at Ray's words, "I'm willing to take that chance if it means I get my family back."

"I know how it feels-"

"No, you don't Ray!" She burst, unable to control the anger that was bubbling up inside her, "You have no idea what it's like! You can go back to Star City whenever you want. Meanwhile, I'm stuck here with no way to contact my Mom, My best friend and the last thing I need is you telling me that what I'm doing is wrong!"

Ray's eyes widened into the puppy-like appearance she had gotten used to, "You're wrong." He announced, "I have nothing to go back to. The entire world thinks I'm dead and the girl I loved-" He let out a mirthless chuckle, "That doesn't matter, but what does matter is the fact that you are needed on this team and we can't stop Savage if you get killed."

Alex let out a sigh, crossing her arms as she brushed the appearance of tears from the corner of her eye before facing the inventor again, "I have to do this, I'm sorry."

He didn't try and stop her this time, only hunched his shoulders and stared at the ground as she pressed forward, stopping in the middle of the hallway as a dark-clad figure entered her vision. She whipped her lasso around, and the figure caught it in his hands, wrapping the rope around his palm as he moved closer.

"Alex wait-" Ray's sentence was cut off as he caught sight of the scene before him.

"Stay Back!" Alex ordered, refusing to release her grip on the lasso, "Who the hell are you?"

The figure threw back his hood, revealing the blonde curls that clung to his scalp and framed his face.

His cerulean gaze met theirs and he holstered his gun, "My name is Robert Queen, I'm Oliver's son and I need your help."

"That's not possible," Ray muttered, moving to Alex's side, "Oliver never had any kids."

Robert tilted his head, indicating that his existence clearly disproved his claim.

"He's telling the truth" Alex announced, nodding to the glowing lasso around the kid's hand. She released the tension in her arms, moving closer to the kid. Rob let go of the lasso before straightening up, his black leather tunic clinging to him as he turned to face the two heroes.

"I need you to help me save Connor" He announced, something lingering in his voice as he said his friend's name, "I think Grant's gonna kill him."

Alex shared a look with Ray before the inventor nodded down the hallway, "This way, I think we may have something we can use to catch him off guard."

Rob nodded, following the two down the hallway toward Ray's makeshift lab.

"You know my dad used to tell stories about the two of you" He spoke out of nowhere, "well, he never really met you, but Ray would talk about you all the time,"

Alex chuckled at his bluntness, "I doubt that, I don't really know Ray that well." She admitted, trying to gauge the reaction of the man walking ahead of her. Rob, on the other hand, seemed to look between the two of them before a look of realization crossed his face.

"That makes sense," Rob announced, "I mean to me you guys have known each other for years."

He almost seemed to backpedal on his previous statement, trying to keep his embarrassment in check. She heard a chuckle come from Ray as he moved around the lab.

"Well you are certainly Felicity's kid," He spoke wistfully.

Rob blinked blankly.

"Who?"

"Felicity Smoak," Ray announced, "Y'know the woman your dad has been in love with for a while?"

Rob shook his head, "The only Felicity Smoak I know is the one who owns Smoak Tech, and she's been gone for years."

"Then who-"

Alex cut him off, "What Ray is trying to say is that he's trying to piece together who your parents are."

Rob nodded, "Yeah, I never knew my Mom and my dad never talked about her. Always said it was too hard for him."

Alex scoffed slightly, she'd been there before. It usually meant the person in question was dead. Not that he needed to know that.

"So" Rob began again, "Is there anything you can do to help Connor?"

There it was again. The way he said his name.

Alex recognized the way he said it.

The soft tone filled with worry.

Their relationship went far beyond friendship.

Ray sifted through a box of small devices, quickly piecing something together and handing it to the kid, "Here, these are some old prototypes I considered for the suit before I found the alloy" He explained, most of the words going over Alex's head as he held out several small discs.

"It's pretty simple, place them on the back of your hand and it released a powerful electromagnetic pulse, stunning everything in its path."

Rob stared in awe at the invention, slipping the disc underneath his gloves in a hidden pocket.

Rob went to go thank them but was greeted with the sensation of the ship shaking under their feet.

"What was that?" He asked. His question was answered by Stein and Jax barging into the room, a determined look on their faces.

"Sara's in trouble," Stein explained, "We have to go now."

Alex gripped her sword and turned toward Rob, "You're up kid."

He threw his hood over his head and followed them out, the Waverider releasing them into the ravaged city.

A resounding boom filled the area as Rob released the electromagnetic pulse, several of Grant's minions covering their ears in pain as the kid fought his way forward, heading back to back with Connor.

"Told you I'd save you," Alex heard him whisper before releasing another pulse.

She smirked and tore through the crowds, launching a kick into the stomach of one gang member before smacking another behind the head.

"How'd you convince Rip to stay?" Sara yelled, the two women facing similar opponents before throwing them both to the ground.

"My charm of course" Alex quipped, blocking a blow from another gang member before grabbing his arm and twisting, shoving her foot into his back.

Several shots of blue light flew past her and Mick's words flew past her.

"Cowards all!"

The fight was over.

Oliver turned toward his son, "That was impressive Rob, your mother would've been proud."

Alex stood on the fringe of the reunion between Oliver and Ray and Kendra. She knew he preferred his space.

She chose instead to watch as Rob caressed the cheek of Connor before bringing him in for a hug, a slight twitch on her lips.

"Thank you for your help Alex," Oliver's deep voice pulled her attention his way, meeting the weary look in his eye.

She uncrossed her arms, holding her hand out, "Anytime Mr. Queen."

He disregarded the handshake and pulled her into his arms, "It's good to finally meet you."

The embrace caught her by surprise, but she returned it reluctantly. When they pulled away Oliver seemed to look at her with a soft glint in his gaze.

"Ray's lucky to have you." That was the last thing he said before patting her on the shoulder and walking over to talk with Sara.

Alex tried to push the fluttering in her stomach down at the sound of Oliver's words. Something must have happened in their future to bring them closer together.

Why else would Oliver decide to hug her upon moments of meeting her?

"Miss Prince?' Rob's timid voice broke through her thoughts, his hand intertwined with Connor's a soft look shared between the two men, "I wanted to thank you for helping me save Connor"

She felt her lips twitch upward, "It was nothing, just part of our jobs."

"In any case," Rob continued, "I wanted to give you a gift"

He reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a small disc alight with blue out of the dark leather. She swore she felt her heart stop.

"I uh, I swiped it before Connor went missing, Sara mentioned something about a broken extrapolator and I knew Aunt Felicity had one so-"

She brought the kid into her arms, squeezing him tightly as her voice broke, "Thank you"

Alex pulled away, pressure building behind her eyes, "Take care of each other okay?"

The two men nodded before Alex turned her back on the couple, slowly fingering the small disc before stuffing it into her jacket pocket.

She could barely contain her excitement as she bounced back to her room, gingerly placing the extrapolator in a jar near her bedstand.

She was determined to keep this one safe.

The door hissed open behind her and she quickly hid the jar behind a pile of books, turning around to see Ray standing there with a bottle of vodka in his hands.

"Hey," He began, "Look, I know I was a bit of a jerk earlier with the whole extrapolator thing"

Alex bit her lip, trying to calm her rising heartbeat.

"But" Ray continued, shutting the door behind him, "I uh wanted to make it up to you. Y'know considering you're cut off from your friends and family and all."

She felt her stomach leap as he moved closer, joining her on the bed and crossing his legs.

"I thought, just because you're not from this world it doesn't mean we can't be friends."

A soft smile graced her lips as she turned to face the lanky man in front of her.

"Okay, what did you have in mind?"

His face broke out into a wide smile as he handed the bottle over to her.


	7. Marooned

The sound of metal against metal clanked through the room as Mick's knife lodged itself in the wall of the Waverider.

Alex shuffled her cards back and forth before discarding two of them to be replaced. She noted the look on Leonard's face before shifting her gaze back to her hand.

"He's not doing well with being cooped up is he?"

Mick's roar echoed through the chamber, "I was recruited for my ability to burn things and now we're in the one place I can't do that!" He yelled, staring at the blue light around him, "a spaceship!"

Leonard's foot stopped Mick from moving any further, an expectant look crossing his face. Rory disregarded him.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Why?" Rory snarled, "You gonna clock me in the head if I don't listen again?"

Leonard moved his leg, Mick stepping over the trio and marching up the stairs, Sara scooting out of the way of the pyromaniac.

"Everything okay with you two?" The assassin asked, a curious look crossing her face.

Leonard's stare remained on his cards, "Peachy."

Alex smirked as she drew several cards from the deck and revealed her hand, "i do believe that is a royal flush and I get my winnings again,"

Sara groaned, "What is that, your third royal flush? You've got to be cheating somehow"

Alex stuck her tongue out at the assassin in a childish manner, "I'm just that good Lance."

Sara bit her lip, staring at the Amazon and contemplating her next remark. Just as she was about to respond, an alarm cut off her words, calling them upstairs.

Sighing reluctantly, the trio abandoned their game of poker and followed Gideon's instructions, Alex's joints popping as she stood up.

Perhaps some action was needed after all.

Apparently she was still stuck heeding the whims of Rip Hunter, who seemed to think that answering a distress call from his former employers was a good idea.

"Doesn't it seem suspicious this distress call just happened to reach us?" Leonard brought up a a good point, almost voicing her exact thoughts.

"I'm with Elsa over there," Alex brought up, moving closer to the criminal.

"Ooh an Ice Queen," Leonard remarked, "I'm flattered,"

Alex sent him a sarcastic smile, "Don't get used to it," She turned back to Rip, missing the flickering gaze of Ray Palmer on her and Leonard, "It does seem a bit convenient that the exact information we're needing just happens to send out a distress call near our exact location"

"How do we know it's not a trap?" Sara backed her up, appearing at her side.

Rip looked at the two of them, "We don't, but what we do know is that Savage's trail has gone cold. And unless Gideon can upload the data from Acheon's computer-"

"I'm in" an unlikely support system came in the form of Mick Rory.

Leonard jerked back, "You are?"

Clearly she was not the only one surprised by Mick's show of support.

Rory refused to look Leonard in the eye, "The sooner we end Savage the sooner I get back to where I belong?"

"Prison?" Stein offered.

"A Mental Hospital?" Alex spoke up immediately after, garnering a laugh from the pyro.

"Any of those options are better than this one" Rory simply explained, strutting away from the table without any other explanation.

Alex shared a small look with Sara before turning back to Rip, who simply told Gideon to plot the course.

She however, returned to her room, playing with the extrapolator a little bit longer before placing it back in the drawer next to her bed. She couldn't put a finger on why she had been feeling so down since Star City.

She couldn't figure out why she wasn't using the extrapolator to head back to her own world and help Kara and Alfie out herself.

Why she wasn't already at home snug in her own apartment bed.

A knock was heard at her door that pulled her out of her thoughts. Alex turned to see Sara standing there with a fresh bottle of whiskey in her hand.

"You looked like you could use a drink," The assassin explained, an unidentifiable look on her face. Alex chuckled softly before grabbing the glass out of her hand.

"The real question is who did you steal it from?" Alex teased, watching the dark liquid leave the bottle and gently fill up her cup.

Sara shrugged, "I figured since Rip's out on a death mission, he won't mind if we borrow from his personal stash,"

Alex took a sip, letting the alcohol burn down her throat, "Borrowing implies a return," She stared at the blonde sitting by her side, "Why do I get the feeling this bottle is going to go mysteriously missing?"

Sara sent her a cheeky shrug before capping the whiskey and placing it on her nightstand, "there, now you have to give it back. Borrowed."

Alex chuckled as she raised the glass to her lips, some of the weight that had been pressing against her chest since Star City leaving her as she spent time with Sara.

Their moment was cut short by the sensation of the ship shaking underneath their feet, sending them falling sideways, their drinks spilling and Sara landing on top of her. Alex stared at the small space between them, gulping down the same sensation she felt around Ray back down into her stomach as Sara pushed herself up, Alex following suit.

They traveled to the bridge, just in time to see Ray strap into the Captain's chair.

"What the hell is going on?" Sara asked, turning toward Leonard.

"Boy Scout is gonna get us all killed!"

Kendra faced the two women, "Our hull has been breached,"

Sara and Alex shared a look before heading back down the hallway, Leonard following quickly after them.

"Where are you going?"

"To deal with the hole in the ship"

"Make sure Picard doesn't get us all killed!"

"Actually I'm more like Sulu," Ray gasped happily, "Or Han Solo!"

"Ray!" Alex reminded him, pulling the scientist back to reality, "Focus"

He nodded in her direction before swinging his chair back around. She ran after Sara and Leonard, reaching the engine room just in time to join Sara and Leonard in discovering the flaw of the ship.

A giant gaping hole in the side of the engine room.

"Here!" Leonard shouted, blasting his gun at the hole in the hopes of icing it over. Alex knew it was a temporary solution.

Alex could feel the cold of space begin to settle into her bones as the glow of Leonard's gun began to dim.

"How long can you keep that up for?" Sara asked, rubbing her bare arms. Alex was suddenly glad she had decided to wear a long sleeved top today.

Leonard shook his head, "Not long I'm gonna run out of charge"

Alex's impatience flared up again, "You couldn't invent a gun that didn't need to be charged?"

Leonard spun to face her, "Take it up with the talkative kid from Central City Princess, I didn't invent this thing!"

Gideon's calm voice rang over them, "Be advised, the breach is only partially contained,"

Alex scoffed, "Great"

Leonard pulled at the doors that had suddenly closed behind them, "guess we know the bulkhead doors are working,"

Alex appeared next to Sara and Leonard, testing the lock, finding that not even her superstrength could undo Gideon's need to keep the rest of the ship from being contaminated.

Red filled their vision and a familiar face met Alex's gaze through the circular window.

"Ray!" She called, pounding against the door again, feeling a sudden urge to break free.

"Alex!" His muffled voice pressed against the window.

Sara interjected, "Nice of you to show up,"

Ray stole a look behind him and Alex supposed Kendra was there too, slightly out of sight. Something in her stomach growled. Alex suddenly considered that she hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast that morning.

That's why it was starting to hurt.

"Hold on," Ray's voice sent a soothing sensation washing over her, "We're gonna get you out of there I promise."

Alex nodded, believing him. But that belief did nothing to quell the goosebumps prickling across her skin, causing a shiver to erupt across her shoulders and arms. She began to rub at the thin sleeves, the cotton material of her shirt doing little to keep out the cold vacuum of space.

Sara's eyebrows creased in worry at the sight of the Amazon, "Is there another option?"

Leonard had the same idea, "Not to rush you Raymond, but it's getting cold in here. I wouldn't complain, but princess and blondie over here are freezing."

"Can't you just open the doors Gideon?" Sara shouted to the sky.

Alex shook her head, "I can't even open the doors. They're locked tight until the breach is sealed,"

Leonard rolled his eyes, "Well that's not happening from in here,"

Alex focused on Ray's face, she recognized the look clouding his eyes. The look he got when a particularly dangerous idea appeared in his head.

"How much time do we have until-"

"We're dead?" Sara spoke up, finishing the question everyone was thinking.

Unsure of what else to do, Alex sighed and wandered over to the wall opposite the breach and leaned against it, sliding down to take a seat and stare out into the space before her.

Warmth gathered on either side of her and she found Sara and Leonard leaning against her, the three of them back where they started.

Benched on a ship, except this time they had no alcohol to bond over.

"You guys ever play i-spy?" Sara offered, unsure what else to do.

Leonard faced Sara with an incredulous look on his face, "only on every awful family road trip ever,"

Alex chuckled, "My Mom and I would play this game called hotseat," She explained, recalling the fond memories of driving to visit Aunt Etta and Uncle Charlie when she was growing up, "No matter what questions they were asked, the person in the hot seat had to answer,"

Alex chuckled at the memory of her Mom's bright red face when she had asked how she had come to be. The smile dimmed when she remembered how the game would end whenever Alex had brought up her dad.

"You ever stolen anything?" Leonard immediately asked.

Sara shook her head, "Come on dude,"

Leonard shrugged, "It was her idea,"

"Yeah I have," Alex confirmed, "When I left Themyscira I stole my Mom's weapons and armor,"

Sara leaned forward, "You mean-"

"Girl Scout's been fighting with stolen goods" Leonard finished for her, a smile drawing itself on his face.

Alex rolled her eyes and Sara scooted closer.

"Okay my turn," The blonde began, "So on this mystical island full of women, no boys are allowed, does that mean what I think it means?"

Alex smirked, "How else are we supposed to find pleasure on the island?"

Sara laughed, "Okay, it's official, we're taking a trip there one day,"

Alex giggled as the game continued, each question sillier and more absurd than the last. Somehow, the game had caused her to drift off, and she found her eyes softly closing as darkness began to envelop her, causing her to forget about the cold surrounding her, a heavy warmth cloaking her body.

She drifted in and out of consciousness, barely catching pieces of the conversation Leonard and Sara were having over there.

Alex was only able to catch the last bit of Sara's statement. "Mick's in a dark place, he's not coming back"

"Yes he is," Alex protested, trying to see the best in people like her mother used to. Trying to see where they needed help, "He's angry now, but he'll come back."

Sara and Leonard shared a skeptical look and the door swung open. Alex stood up, Leonard's jacket falling to the ground before she picked it up, explaining the warmth she felt during her nap.

They followed the path back to the cargo bay, where Alex froze at the sight before her. Kendra's tight embrace of Ray sent her stomach growling again.

She really needed to get something to eat, didn't she?

"You kids need a moment?" Leonard teased, the joke causing another twist in her gut to form. She suspected the lack of warmth had messed with her systems more than she thought.

"Mr. Palmer nearly died" Gideon informed them, sending a tightness crawling across Alex's chest.

Ray had almost died.

Ray had been on death's door and she hadn't been there to help.

"Well I guess that's another thing we have in common," She teased, trying to stop the growling of her stomach and tightness in her chest from expanding.

"Gideon!" Leonard called, moving back to the hallway, "What's happening on the Acheron?"

"Funny you should ask" Gideon replied, her monotonous voice a relief, "I just received a message from Mr. Rory. It appears he has escaped capture and is now returning to the Waverider."

Alex smiled, sending a look at Sara, "told you he'd come back,"

The five of them made their way to the entrance hall of the waverider Ray questioning Rory's ability to fly the jumpship in the first place.

"Actually, I did the flying," Gideon said proudly, correcting Ray's mistake, "he received quite a beating at the hands of the pirates. That's him now"

The doors of the waverider opened, allowing the burly man to move forward.

"You okay Mick?" Leonard asked, checking up on his oldest friend.

Mick said nothing, turning back toward the doors as if acknowledging a presence, "Boys! Ship's all yours,"

Alex's stomach dropped as she watched the Time Pirates file onto the ship, disappointment settling over her as she came to an awful realization. She had been wrong about Mick.

She had been wrong about everything.

She gripped the lasso by her side, Ray stepping forward to voice her thoughts, "You son of a bitch!"

"What are you doing Mick?"

"I'm getting us home are you in?"

"Yeah, time to choose a side I guess" Leonard charged his gun, pointing it at the traitorous member of their team, "Chosen."

"Bastard!" Mick snarled, "Go, get them! I'll get the time drive."

Shots rang out and Alex ducked behind a pillar, Sara taking a spot opposite her, the two women ducking out of the way of the laser fire.

She knew her cuffs could dodge bullets, but laser fire? That was one theory she didn't want to test.

Grasping her lasso, she pressed forward, slinging it around a pirate's leg before pulling, his feet disappearing underneath him. She continued to move through the hallway, her fist colliding with one pirate while her leg smacked the gut of another. Sara followed her lead, bo staff in hand as the two women fought their way through the growing horde. A charge of electricity flew past Alex, taking out several pirates behind her and she whipped around, nodding gratefully at Ray before pressing forward.

"Step away from it Mick" Sara's voice rang through the engine room.

Mick faced the assassin, "Tell you what Blondie, Walk away, and I won't kill you."

A flash of light slapped Mick's wrist, the lasso of hestia wrapping itself around his hand, pulling it away from the time drive.

"She said Step away Mick," Alex's voice was low, dangerous, her accent making an appearance for the first time in weeks.

Mick's laugh was throaty, overconfident. Alex tightened her grip on the lasso. "I like you two, you girls got a lot of guts, that;s why I'm only gonna kill you a little bit"

He reached for his gun, tugging the lasso forward but Sara kicked it out of his hands. Alex felt her momentum dragged toward him and slammed a kick into his back, dodging his blows while Sara bombarded him from the front.

They were wearing him down.

Her fist flew forward, Mick grasping her arm and seizing the action, she used it to her advantage, hooking her leg around his torso and pulling herself upward to sit on his shoulders, her lasso winding itself around his neck while Sara continued to attack. Her torso collided with the ground as Mick threw her off, but she scrambled back up and continued the attack, Sara and her launching several kicks and punches his direction before headbutting Alex in the face.

It didn't phase her.

But Sara's disappearance from the fight did.

Mick had tossed her aside and then almost burned her with the heat gun. Anger fueled her, spurring her forward to attack the burly man, trying to kick his legs out from under him.

All she succeeded in doing was giving him access to the lasso, which soon found its way around her neck.

Her breathing grew shallow, voice hoarse as she tried to choke out a plea.

"Mick!" Leonard's voice entered the room, a ray of blue light sending his partner flying to the other side of the room, releasing his tight grip.

Alex's felt air whoosh back into her lungs and she collapsed on all fours.

It was time to take a break.

She was still getting used to the winding paths of the waverider, and it often felt like the rooms changed places every day.

She was sure she would get used to it soon enough.

As she made her way to what she assumed was the kitchen, she rounded the corner and froze at the sight before her.

Ray and Kendra.

Kissing.

Like lovers kissing. Not friend kissing.

Her stomach growled again, only the twist that accompanied it sent Alex biting her cheek in pain.

She wasn't hungry then.

Ray and Kendra waved at her, but she wasn't registering anything they were saying.

She shook her head free of her fog, "Sorry, I guess this isn't the kitchen,"

Kendra laughed at the joke, while Ray almost looked sheepish. Like he had been caught doing something he wasn't supposed to.

Alex meekly chuckled before walking back down the hallway she came from. She even missed the briefing on the bridge about Mick's fate.

She didn't need to go.

She knew what awaited him.

Besides, she didn't need to see another one of her failures.

Instead, she curled up in her bed, contemplating the sight she had seen only a few minutes earlier.

Ray and Kendra?!

When did that happen?

When had she started to care about Ray's love life?

Why did she care?

She swallowed the truth before standing up and stepping out of her room, shuffling across the hallway and briefly knocking on the metal door of the bedroom across from hers.

"Alex, hey" Sara smiled, she was already dressed for bed, her shorts hugging her thighs while the tank top clung to her figure, "What's up?"

Knowing she would lose her courage if she backed down, Alex went for it, pressing her lips against the soft ones of Sara Lance, her fingers rushing through the silky strands of hair that had been newly released from her ponytail.

Sara began to kiss back.

The two broke apart only for a moment, Alex's hand sneaking up Sara's shirt to lift the hem of the skintight pajama top. Sara placed her hands on hers, breathing heavy as she faced the taller woman.

"You sure you wanna do this?" She asked.

Alex didn't say anything, only nodded softly before the door closed on them, granting the two women privacy as they disappeared for the rest of the night.


	8. Night of the Hawk pt 1

Alex stirred underneath the covers, letting out a soft sigh as she snuggled closer to the warmth that enveloped her.

Sara's hand was busy brushing strands of hair away from her face, tucking it behind the Amazon's ear as the brunette shifted to meet the assassin's bright smile. Alex felt like herself again.

She felt normal.

"You have a good night?" Sara whispered with a smirk on her face, lips fluttering against her collarbone. The action sent Alex's stomach fizzing, a sensation that traveled down the rest of her body, lingering between her thighs as she playfully pushed Sara's shoulder before standing up, her naked figure on display. Sara drank in every angle.

"As a matter of fact," Alex said with a smirk crossing her face, "I did."

A chuckle escaped her lips as she pulled her pants back on, Sara let out a whine as she did.

"Come on" Sara continued, "I only get to see you naked once?"

Alex threw her shirt on, closing the space between the two with a smirk on her face, "Who says this was a one-time thing?"

Silence hung between the two women as realization settled over them. Sara was probably right. Alex had really only approached her after watching Ray-

No. she told herself. She was a woman traveling through time for godsakes. If she wanted to sleep with Sara it was because she had found her attractive. There couldn't be any other reason.

Alex cut through the awkward silence, "I'm gonna head to the kitchen for some breakfast," she told the other woman, "do you-uh, do you want anything?"

Sara shook her head, the playful tone gone from the room as Alex grabbed the rest of her stuff and left the room, creasing her face together in frustration as she leaned against the door of her own room.

She actually found the kitchen this time around, freezing when she caught sight of the tall figure by the stove.

"Oh hey, Alex!" Ray's cheery voice cut through the air, unaware of the tension that existed between the two of them, "I'm making some omelets, do you want any?"

Alex shook her head, "Nah, I'm good," she crossed her arms before making her way to the fridge to try and fill her stomach with homecooked goods to take her mind off the pinching that seemed to permanently live in her chest.

She settled on a bowl of yogurt and granola, trading her want of a nice meal for a quick breakfast so she didn't have to face Ray for very long.

Alex leaned against the island in the kitchen, silently stirring the brown chunks of protein around as she tried to settle into the awkward silence, the hissing of the pan the only sound heard through the kitchen.

"Well isn't this charming?" Leonard's drawl cut through the tension, drawing both Alex and Ray's attention to the rogue. Ray smiled before folding over the eggs onto a small plate, waving to Snart before gesturing to his breakfast, "Well, I better get this to Kendra before she goes all bird-lady on me" The inventor joked, Alex sending him a small smile as she stuffed her breakfast in her mouth to avoid saying something she might regret.

"And the other shoe drops," Leonard smirked, moving to the other side of the island, his hands folded across each other as he sent an expectant look Alex's direction.

She shook her head, polishing off her spoon before responding, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Leonard's eyebrows drew themselves upward, making it clear that he did not believe her statement, "You mean you don't care that Raymond and Bird-Brain are sharing bedrooms now?"

Alex froze, her spoon halfway out of her mouth as she swallowed her breakfast in order to answer his question, "Ray and Kendra are both adults" she admitted, "They're allowed to do whatever they want."

She moved to place her bowl in the sink when Leonard grabbed her arm, "And what about what you want Girl Scout?" He asked, an urgency in his tone, "you can't hide feelings forever, especially in a ship this small."

Alex ripped her arm out of his grip, stomach flopping over at his words. "I have no idea what you're talking about," She lied, thankful she didn't have the lasso on her, "Besides, what I want doesn't matter," She admitted, tossing her bowl in the sink, appetite gone, "It never has"

Gideon's voice called them to the bridge, Alex ignoring Leonard's pitiful look as she strapped in beside a now fully-dressed Sara.

"Hey," The blonde whispered, "Is everything okay?"

Alex shot a look at Ray and Kendra's close proximity and turned back toward the assassin, "Yeah," She lied again, a smile plastered on her face, "Everything's fine."

Her seat shook as the Waverider took off, her gaze fixed onto the ceiling as they traveled through the temporal zone, trying to keep her focus on the mission at hand.

When the Waverider landed, she shook her head to try and pop her ears so she could actually hear what Martin, Jax, and Rip were discussing.

"What's Savage doing in Pleasantville?" Jax asked, the first words to finally break through the temporary deafness.

Alex stood up, her boots clacking against the floor as she examined the files Gideon had pulled up, detailing grisly murders in the small town they had landed in.

"Murder Apparently," Rip mumbled under his breath.

Alex creased her brow at the news, "That doesn't sound like Savage," She admitted, meeting Rip's affirming gaze, "Unless a version of Kendra and Carter have been there recently,"

Kendra stared at the woman, a hint of offense in her eyes, "We haven't"

Alex shrugged, "Or you just don't remember," She offered, "you didn't remember Aldous or the dagger either"

Ray moved to stop Kendra as Rip stepped between the two women.

"They haven't been anywhere near Harmony Falls," Rip assured her, his eyes chastising the young Amazon. Alex rolled her brown eyes to the back of her head as Leonard stepped up beside Alex, placing a supportive hand on her shoulder, the gesture not going unnoticed by Ray, who seemed to puff up as he saw that.

"Alex is right though," Sara repeated, "We don't know why Savage is here, it could very well be because a young Kendra and Carter are on their way as we speak,"

Alex nodded at the blonde in thanks.

"Plus, there's gotta be a reason for these murders," Leonard spoke up beside her, "Savage doesn't seem like the type to kill for the fun of it,"

"He isn't" Rip spoke sadly, no doubt recalling the murders of his own wife and child.

Alex turned to face him, "So what do we do?"

"We investigate," Rip began, "Starting with the first victim"

Sunlight streamed through the giant living room, Alex taking extra care to canvas the property as the real estate agent lead Kendra and Ray through the rooms, explaining the benefits of the home, right down to the room above the garage.

"It's perfectly suitable for live-in help" The agent pointed that line directly at her and Kendra, which Alex had no problem rebutting.

"Oh, well" She began, "My sister and her husband don't need a maid."

She could see the horror pass over the woman's face before plastering the fakest smile Alex had ever seen back on her face.

"I see," the agent mumbled, "I assume your husband will be joining later?"

Inwardly smirking, Alex gazed around the room before turning back to the real estate agent, "Oh no," She said, deciding to have some fun, "I'm not the husband type"

That seemed to be enough for the agent to hand over the key and leave the three of them alone, Kendra and Ray bursting out in laughter at the woman's expression.

She moved several boxes upstairs, Gideon providing them with enough clothes to make their ruse believable. Alex had left her extrapolator back on the ship, still debating the merits of heading home and leaving the team in the dust.

She knew she couldn't.

No matter how much she wanted to, she couldn't leave her team behind. They needed her and she needed them.

Laughter flew up from the living room and her insides twisted, something awful rising in her throat and threatening to spill out like it had earlier that day with Kendra.

She descended the staircase, ready to offer up any ideas on how to track down Savage and protect Kendra, when she heard Ray's voice from around the corner.

"Soon as we get a divorce, we'll figure us out, in the meantime, doesn't mean we can't have fun with it!"

Alex swallowed the lump in her throat before heading toward the door, allowing herself to take a deep breath of fresh air before being knocked off her feet, pushed against the wall of an alleyway that did not belong to the rich suburbs Gideon had picked out for them.

"Fancy meeting you here Princess," A high pitched cackle pierced her ears and she met the crazed gaze of the blonde before her, ponytails swinging as she brought her lips to Alex's perfectly made-up cheek leaving a bright pink mark in her wake.

"Kali," Alex spoke through gritted teeth, her breathing shallow as Kali's arm dug deeper into her windpipe, "nice to see you again" she coughed.

Kali shot an anxious look around her shoulder, staring down the empty alley, as if she was expecting someone to jump out at any moment, voice dropping low, "You need to leave now"

Her arm dropped from her windpipe and Alex choked out a response, "I need to what?"

Kali moved closer, grasping ahold of the amazon's shoulders, "Savage knows where you are, he knows where to look, Lexa, you need to go."

Alex shook her head, her brow creased in confusion.

Kali let out a frustrated sigh and launched a swift kick to her gut before disappearing from view, sending the posters plastered on the brick swirling off the walls.

Alex brought her hand to her stomach, ignoring the bruise that would inevitably form over the next few days. She drew herself out of the alley, finding herself in a completely different part of town than what she was used to.

Crowds of people flooded the streets and she forced herself to fix her appearance before joining the symphony of footsteps and chatter back to the suburb she had been plopped in the middle of.

She was halfway there when she recalled the situation Rip had placed her in and rolled her eyes. It wouldn't be hard. She could just head back to Waverider and jump home now. She could follow Kali's advice and leave. Especially if it was true.

Alex froze, staring at the sidewalk before her. It would be so easy. To jump back and snuggle back into her bed no problem, to have lunch with Alfie by tomorrow and save the world with Kara in the morning.

But she wouldn't be her mother's daughter if she did that. She wouldn't be a Trevor if she did that.

Besides, there was no indication that the speedster was correct. At least this way, it was on her own terms. At least this way, she was with her team, no matter how uncomfortable she felt.

With a sigh, she blew a stray curl out of her face and ducked into the grocery store, deciding she should at least cook them dinner if they were gonna be living together.

It was going to be a long mission.


	9. Night of the Hawk pt 2

"You know what I've always wanted to try?" Ray's voice carried into the living room, a wide smile on his face as Kendra popped her head around the kitchen beam, an unsure look in her wide eyes. "Those TV dinners my parents used to ramble about."

Kendra's chuckle validated his claim, sending a spurt of happiness up into his chest, his smile growing wider.

"I'm serious," He continued, "My parents used to rave about how great it was to just have everything ready-made for you. It was ridiculous."

Kendra didn't seem to buy it but she shrugged along with him, "Alright, I guess tonight is TV dinner night." She grabbed her coat and pecked his cheek, red moving across his face as he watched her retreating figure.

Ray went back to unpacking the dishes and silverware Gideon had fabricated for them, curious as to what was keeping Alex up in her room. He would've suspected that she would've finished unpacking a while ago.

Carefully deconstructing the cardboard box and placing it with the pile in the storage closet, Ray made his way upstairs, training his ear for any sign of her light footsteps or her airy breathing. He got none of that.

Rounding the corner, he saw that nothing had been unpacked from the initial boxes. In fact, they looked like they hadn't been touched since that morning.

And Alex was nowhere to be seen.

Ray's chest began to constrict at the thoughts that ran through his head. She had abandoned them. She had taken her chance to head home and left them to deal with Savage alone.

Ray should've known better. He should've known what to expect after Felicity.

No matter what he said, Alex would always choose her home over a few people she barely knew.

He had no impact. His words meant nothing to people.

_They mean something to Kendra_, his brain reminded him. _That's why you like her._

He smiled fondly at that thought, recalling his initial encounters with the demigoddess. He almost found himself wishing that it was her he had saved all those weeks ago instead of Alex.

Ray shook his head at the awful thought, hoping it was enough to remove it from his brain completely.

He shouldn't wish that. Alex was a valuable member of the team and he should respect her decision to head back to her family.

Maybe they were all she had left.

_That doesn't excuse her abandoning them in the fifties._ His brain whispered. _That doesn't excuse her not saying goodbye._

Ray didn't know why he was so surprised. He should've known something was off when she was talking to Snart that morning. Hardly any breakfast, she wasn't talking to him.

He thought they had something... well it didn't matter anymore.

She was gone and he needed to focus on the mission at hand. He couldn't get distracted by anyone. Kendra or Alex.

The creaking of the door was heard and he jumped up to meet Kendra and finally get to try those delicious dinners his parents and Anna used to rave about.

The doorbell pulled them out of their authentic 50s experience, bringing them back to earth.

"Coming! I'm coming." Kendra yelled, setting the tinfoil tray down and wiping her hands with a napkin before walking up to the door.

"Welcome to the neighborhood" The woman chuckled, grasping hold of Kendra's hand and shaking it intensely.

Kendra looked taken aback, "Thank you. Thank you so much, Miss…" She waited for the woman to give her name.

"Mrs. Knox." The woman responded, Ray still couldn't see her face, "Gail Knox, and this is my husband, Curtis."

"Lovely to meet you." A familiar high pitched voice rang through the house, "I'm sorry, have, have-we met before?"

Kendra's response was hurried, and Ray could practically feel the anxiety radiating from her, "I-I doubt it. I-we just moved in from way out of town."

Ray knew this was his time to step in.

"I hope you like tuna surprise." The man changed the subject.

Ray stood up, placing the tinfoil tray on the end table before joining Kendra at the door, "Are you kidding? I love tuna surpri-" His words caught in his throat as he finally saw what Kendra was so anxious about, "Oh, my God-"

"Raymond!" Kendra cut him off, "These are our new neighbors, Curtis and Gail"

So that's what Savage was calling himself now, "What a surprise. Tuna surprise." He tried to save, gesturing toward the casserole, "So many surprises."

Savage smiled curtly and handed him the dish, "Well, another reason why we dropped by was to let you know that we are having a soiree tonight." He traded a loving look with the woman masquerading as his wife, "It's our daughter Sophie's birthday."

"Stop by anytime after 8:00." Gail informed them, a wide smile spreading across her lips, "We're just across the street. Don't bother to ring the bell."

"No, you just walk right on in." Savage continued, "It's that kind of neighborhood"

The door closed again and Ray's mind immediately went to Kendra, his hand gently rubbing her shoulder, "Are you okay?"

Kendra nodded, her open mouth and shaky breath saying otherwise, "I will be." She brought her head to his chest, his arms wrapping themselves around her and pulling her closer. This was unfair. To force her to relive her trauma over and over again wherever they went. It made him sick.

Everywhere they went he was there, and everywhere they went Kendra had to see the face of the man who had murdered Carter. The door opened again and they pulled apart, smiles plastered on their faces in case it was Savage back for more.

Instead, it was Alex, grocery bags in hand, eyebrows creased as she looked at the expressions on her teammate's faces.

"Is everything okay?" She asked right away, placing the bags on the bench underneath the coats. Ray and Kendra let out a sigh of relief, the latter explaining the recent interaction they had with their new neighbors.

Ray couldn't believe she was still here. But he knew that some small part of him had leaped for joy when she had walked through the door, knowing that she had come back for them.

Of course, it made sense for her to go shopping. They barely had any food. Ray shouldn't have jumped to the worst conclusion. He shook his head, his lips perking upward as he chastised himself.

"Ray," Her voice pulled him out of his thoughts, her ponytail swinging as she handed him his jacket, "Come on, we gotta go."

He nodded pulling on his jacket, "Where are we going exactly?"

"To tell Rip that we saw Savage," Alex explained, locking the door behind them, "He'll know what to do next."

He didn't have super empathy, but he could tell something was off with Alex. She wasn't meeting his eyes, and her steps were quick, anxious looks thrown side to side as she moved toward the direction of the Waverider.

Something was wrong.

"Savage doesn't think I recognize him, which means he won't try to kill me." Kendra debriefed the team, "He can't steal my powers before I've found them."

Ray stuffed the tuna casserole in his mouth, trying to separate the villain from the cook, "Don't forget, we also have to figure out why he's killing the townsfolk."

Kendra's face twisted in disgust at his actions, "Are you really eating that?"

He shrugged, it was good, and he will never apologize for good food, "Say what you want about Savage." Ray spoke up, "He makes one hell of a casserole."

A soft chuckle came from his side, and he turned to see Alex standing there, her lips turned upward at his statement. It made Ray straighten up and his lips perk upward. At least she found him funny.

Rip quickly diverted the conversation, "Yes, well, Mr. Snart and I have been analyzing these forensic files." He began, pulling them up on Gideon's desktop. Alex leaned forward, examining the files, Leonard walking around to join her.

"Which reveals nothing except Savage is very good at making people disappear." The criminal announced, looking at Alex as if she should know something the rest didn't. For some reason their close proximity made Ray's chest tighten and he finally put the casserole down, moving to join Kendra's side, pulling her closer.

"Hmm, something you both have in common," Jax spoke through the tension, finally addressing the elephant in the room. Ray had to admit that in all the chaos, he had forgotten about the dubious fate of their other teammate.

Silence hung over the room and no one wanted to say anything to refute him.

The younger kid stared around the room, "Are we just gonna pretend like none of this happened?" He asked, his voice getting louder, "That Mick Rory wasn't a part of our team? If you can just ice your best friend like that," He paused, as if considering his next words, "I hate to think what you could do to us."

Alex was the first one to respond, "Look, Snart's on our side okay?" Ray felt the familiar tight feeling as she defended the criminal beside her, "And none of that matters because right now, we need to stay focused on the mission." She urged.

Rip nodded, agreeing with Alex's assessment, "She's right." He began, "Look, Savage is going to be busy with this little cocktail party." he laid out the plan, and Ray stood at attention, "Whilst you three keep an eye on him," He pointed at Alex, Kendra, and Ray, "Sara and Martin have the opportunity to find out what he's doing in the secret wing of that asylum."

Ray turned to leave, when he witnessed what looked like a whispered argument between Alex and Rip, only one final command heard throughout the ship.

"You're needed with Dr. Palmer and Miss Saunders," He ordered, "You know why Miss Prince."

Alex rolled her eyes, turning back toward the table before meeting Ray's gaze and quickly turning away from him.

Ray couldn't explain why that hurt.

The dinner party was in full swing, and Ray was busy hanging up Kendra's coat to pay too much attention to the people that Savage had surrounded himself with. He was heading back toward Kendra when he caught the last few words of her current conversation.

"Then I suggest you find a waitress," Her tone was clipped, angry with the woman for assuming she was the help. Ray's felt his face getting hot. Was it that weird for a woman of color to just exist in the fifties? He grit his teeth, jaw clenching at the woman's next words.

"Well, I-I just assumed-"

Ray stepped forward, playing the dutiful husband, ready to shield Kendra from any more insults, "You assumed wrong." He spoke coldly, letting the woman know that her behavior was not welcomed, "So why don't you go ahead and get your own champagne?"

The woman turned around and caught sight of Alex near the door, Ray went to go and defend her from the insult when she spoke up, "Not a waitress either,"

Alex pushed past the racist woman to grab a glass of champagne, eyes searching the room. No doubt looking for any traps Savage may have planted in case he recognized Kendra. She had dressed up for the occasion, the dark blue dress hitting her knees, almost glittering at a certain angle.

"Wow, I guess this whole interracial marriage thing really is a novelty." Kendra's voice pulled his attention back toward her.

"Huh?" He asked, tearing his eyes away from Alex's presence to face the beautiful woman beside him, he swallowed his nerves, ignoring the jumping in his gut telling him to turn back toward the Amazon, "Well, go ahead and let them stare." He smiled, offering his arm for her to grab, "I've got the most beautiful woman in the room on my arm."

A high pitched voice interrupted their evening, "I couldn't agree with you more."

Ray forced himself to push through the conversation with Savage, a smile on his face as he tightened his grip on Kendra. Once Savage was gone, their smiles disappeared.

"Okay, we need to split up." Kendra planned, placing her champagne flute down on the end table beside her, "You check the back rooms, and I'll see what I can find up here." She pressed forward and Ray held her back.

"Uh, you sure that's a good idea?" He asked, partially wondering if she had gone crazy, "Leaving you up here by yourself with Savage?"

Kendra's tone grew sarcastic, tilting her head and raising her eyebrows, "I'm pretty sure he's not gonna kill me next to the canapes, Ray." He paused, still unsure about the entire plan. She didn't give him a choice, "Go. I'll let you know if I need help."

He nodded slightly, worry creasing his brow before he turned to search the back of the house, a task which took him less than two minutes before discovering a locked door. Bingo.

He was getting ready to find Kendra when he overheard Alex's voice.

"I need to know what you meant by get out of here," Her tone was urgent, clearly whoever she was talking to did not want to talk to her.

"Lexa-"

Ray froze. He recognized that voice. It belonged to the person who had almost killed Alex. To the woman who was on Savage's side. The speedster that had stabbed her. What the hell was Alex doing talking to her? And why hadn't she told the team?

"Don't call me that," Alex snapped, "You don't get to call me that. I'm only here because I need answers, nothing else."

Silence hung between the two, someone sighing before the speedster answered. "I told Savage about you. That's how he knew who you were the night we met." She confessed, "I didn't tell him about anyone else though" Her tone was urgent, but Ray didn't believe her for a second. If the speedster had told Savage about Alex, then that meant he probably knew about...Kendra.

He moved as fast as he could, pushing through the crowds with a polite 'excuse me' and 'sorry' as he looked for the brunette, breathing becoming frantic when he couldn't find her. A hand on his elbow caused him to whip around, meeting the eyes of the woman he was looking for.

"Can we go?" Kendra asked, her hands wrapped around her midsection, "Please?"

Ray nodded, quick to pull her to his side, leaving the house as quickly as they came.

They needed to tell Rip about this new development anyway.

Alex stood outside the white door of Savage's 'man cave' opening her palm to allow Ray to sneak through the keyhole, quickly stationing herself close enough to the door to let Ray know about anyone she might see through the giant window.

"We're in," She told Kendra through the earpiece, a sigh of relief the response she got in return.

"What do you see?" Her voice was almost muffled, shaking back and forth from nerves.

Ray's tinny voice came over the comm, "Uh nothing all that hideous." He debriefed, "Except for a terrible collection of golf pants. Alex chuckled at that, trying to imagine what could be so horrible Ray had to comment on it. "Hang on."

She shook her head, unable to keep the smile off her face as she picked at her shirt sleeve, recalling the last time she had been in the house. KALI had approached her again, to give her the same warning she had given that afternoon. Alex was fed up with her changing sides. If she really cared then why didn't she stop Savage? Why did she try to kill her when they first met in the 80s?

Well, she knew why, but it still enraged her. And then Ray and Kendra had just...left her there. She swears if it wasn't Rip's orders she would be helping Sara out in the hospital right now. What had made them leave her behind? She swallowed her nerves, questioning (not for the first time) whether or not she should've stayed with the Legends when she now has a viable way home. Was there something wrong with her? Why did they leave her there?

Kendra's voice brought her out of her stupor, "Ray? Ray, it's Savage. He's back." Ray didn't respond, "Did you hear me, Ray? You need to get out of there!"

Alex stood guard by the door, staring through the window for any sign of Savage or his makeshift family, "I think I found something." was all Ray said in response.

Alex knocked on the door, catching sight of Savage leaving his car, "Ray, get out of there now!"

"No, no, no, no. You don't have time." Kendra's frantic voice came across their comm unit, "He's already here."

Alex swallowed her nerves, trying to find a viable place to hide as she heard the door click open. She was out of time. They both were. A hand grasped her own and she met the bright blue stare of KALI.

"Follow me," The blonde urged, pulling her down the hallway and into a storage closet, the small space pushing them closer together until there was hardly any space between them, their noses practically touching.

"Why are you doing this?" Alex whispered, trying not to alert Savage to her presence. KALI gulped, before leaning closer.

"Do you trust me?" She whispered in response.

Alex shook her head, "No, and the fact that you think I would-"

Her words were cut off by Savage yelling "Sophie!"

He was close. He was practically right outside the closet.

KALI wasted no time, leaning forward and planting her lips on Alex's. She wanted to resist, to pull away and yell at her for restarting something that died a long time ago, but she knew what KALI was doing. She was trying to save her skin.

The closet door was yanked open, light pouring through, revealing the young couple to Savage, who was quick to pull 'Sophie' away from her.

"Darling," He spoke through gritted teeth, his voice calm, "Why don't you go upstairs, I'll escort our guest out."

Kali nodded, her eyes flashing a warning sign Alex's way, letting her know that she should still leave as soon as possible.

Savage grabbed her bicep, nails digging in like the talons of the couple he was set on hunting down. "I don't know what you think you're doing Diana," He spat out the name, "But you will not distract KALI from this mission."

Alex felt her body thrown forward as he released his grip, she whipped around, knowing that KALI may be a villain, but she knew when to do the right thing.

"You're wrong about her," Alex threw back, if today was any indication, then perhaps her friend was still in there somewhere, "She's capable of so much more than you know."  
Savage tilted his head, a saccharine smile on his lips as he slammed the door in her face.

She was still caught up in the memory of the event when Sara decided to devise a plan to take down Savage.

"Okay, so if Savage isn't the one doing the killing," Sara brought up, finally asking the question Alex had been asking herself the whole time, "what is he doing in town?"

"Doesn't matter," Ray interjected, Kendra by his side.

"We can take him down." The demi-goddess announced, pulling out the same stone dagger they had once used their first time hunting down Savage.

Rip's mood instantly got better once he laid eyes on the weapon, "The Amon Dagger. Where did you-"

"Savage's house." Alex cut Rip off. "That's what you found." Ray nodded her direction and she let out a soft scoff, impressed with his efforts.

Rip moved to the center of the room, finally offering a plan, "All right, we need to proceed on two fronts," He began, "locate Jefferson and make an all-out assault on Savage."

Sara and Alex shared a look before shaking their heads, "A full-on attack only plays to Savage's strengths." Sara began, "If we want to get him-"

"We need to target his weaknesses." Alex finished, and Rip nodded, agreeing with the two strategists.

"Sadly, very few come to mind."

"I can think of one." Kendra finally spoke up, trying to contribute to the conversation, "Me. He wants me, and he always has." Alex found herself agreeing with Kendra's assessment. It was a smart plan. "So if I can get close enough to him, then-"

"Then he'll kill you," Ray interjected, playing the role of an overprotective husband even though they were only fake married.

"Thank you for the vote of confidence," Kendra responded sarcastically, rolling her eyes, "but I don't need your protection."

"She's right," Alex rose up in support, "As far as we know Kendra is our best bet at taking down Savage." She shared a look with the demigoddess, who nodded her thanks, "Besides, Sara and I trained her, she'll be fine."

Ray scoffed, trying not to make this as personal as Alex knew it was, "There's no reason to go alone." He justified, "We're part of a team for a reason."

Kendra moved to confront him, "Yes, and the team seems comfortable with me doing this," She gestured to the three members before them, "so that makes it about you and me."

Alex and Sara lifted their eyebrows as they looked at each other, following Rip out of the room so Kendra and Ray could hash it out without onlookers.

"Hey" Sara caught up with her long strides, "Are you doing okay?"

Alex scoffed. Everyone was asking that it seemed. She nodded. "Yeah, I'm doing fine."

The blonde stopped in front of Alex, eyebrows knitted together, "Cause you don't seem fine."

Alex inhaled sharply, hoping that she could just smile all her problems away. It worked when she was with Alfie, it should be working with the legends.

"Sara," Alex stared into the bright blue gaze, speaking slowly, "I'm fine."

She moved past the smaller woman, ignoring the twisting in her stomach that contradicted her statement.

Ray sat behind the receptionist's desk, his knee bouncing up and down as he watched patients enter and exit the hospital. All he could think about was Kendra. How easy it would be for Savage to kill her and have no witnesses.

The sound of a clipboard made him flinch, turning his attention toward Alex's annoyed expression, her arms leaning against the desk.

"There's literally nothing to do," She complained, a ghost of a smirk on her lips, "I don't know how Sara managed not to go crazy here."

Ray just nodded along. He felt weird talking to her. She had kept Savage's sidekick a secret from them. She still was keeping the speedster a secret from them. Something in his chest hurt, stabbing him from the inside whenever he reminded himself of that fact. Alex seemed to pick up on it.

"You worried about Kendra?" She asked, lowering her voice, "She's going to be fine, I promise. She can-"

"How did you get out of Savage's house?" Ray asked, finally forcing her to own up to her secrets. He caught the slightest bit of worry pass over her face before she shrugged.

"He found me and threw me out," Alex said nonchalantly, like her interaction with him wouldn't jeopardize the mission.

"Just like that?" Ray questioned further, "He talked to you for five minutes and then threw you out?" He continued to press, trying to get her to reveal her secrets. Her tongue stuck itself in her teeth, finally catching onto what he was implying.

She played with her fingernails, "You found out about KALI huh?"

Ray nodded, disappointment creasing his face, "Yeah, Alex, I did." Silence hung between the two of them.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," Alex apologized, as if that made up for her actions, "I just thought-If I could figure out what she was up to before you guys found out she was here-"

"I get it," Ray spoke coldly, not wanting to hear her excuses, "You didn't trust us."

"Ray-"

A shriek cut off her apology and the two turned to see the experiments Savage had been working on during his time in the 50s.

"Kendra-" He whispered.

Alex turned to him, pulling out her sword, "Go," She urged, pressing forward to help Sara tackle the animal they were now facing.

Ray ran down the hallway, his mind only focused on the state of his girlfriend. Savage could've found her out. He could've killed her already. He needed to get there. He slipped his glove over his hand, breaking down the door just in time to see Savage almost plunge the dagger into her chest. Ray pressed a button, the dwarf star sending a blast of energy directly at the immortal, his body flying out the window as he rushed to check up on Kendra.

"You okay?"

She nodded, shaking in his arms as he pulled her close. A shriek came from behind him and he readied his blaster, only to see a pair of boots kick the chest of the hawk hybrid, a sword pushing the animal backward as Alex came into view, using her lasso to choke the animal into unconsciousness. She blew a piece of hair out of her face, meeting Ray's gaze before quickly turning away, no doubt their previous conversation sticking in her mind.

Ray's chest tightened.

He knocked on her door, gulping before walking into the small room upstairs, Alex standing up to meet him.

"Hey," He spoke softly, a sheepish look crossing his face, eyes wide, "I'm sorry for saying that you didn't trust us," He began, watching as Alex crossed her arms, her gaze permanently fixed to the floor, "In reality, it was me that didn't trust you" He continued, "You've done nothing but be loyal to this team and I-" He bit the inside of his cheek, "I should've trusted you. I'm sorry I didn't."

Alex finally lifted her eyelids, dark hues peeking through long lashes, her lips pursed as she considered her response. Ray felt his stomach gurgle. He wanted her to forgive him. He knew he didn't deserve it, but he wanted her to forgive him. He wanted her to trust him again.

"You were right," was all she said, rubbing her arm with her hand as she moved forward, "I should've told you about KALI, I don't know why I didn't." A mirthless chuckle rang through the room, "I guess-I thought- I thought I could change her." Alex bit her lip, "I was wrong."

Ray wasn't sure whether he should hug her, all he knew was that both of them had messed up and he wanted things to go back to the way they were.

"I'm sorry for keeping it from you." She finally responded, pushing past him. He stopped her, grabbing her shoulders, the close proximity throwing him off as he met her gaze once again.

"You're not stupid for thinking you could change her," Ray said, trying to keep the thumping of his chest under control. His stomach jumping again. "If that's what you were thinking."

The air was thick between them, faces mere inches apart.

"I was actually thinking about how we're going to get all of this back," She joked, the heaviness dissipating as she cracked a smile, comfort washing over the two of them as they burst out in laughter. He had gotten his wish. Things were back to normal.

Their shoes crunched against the snow, Alex and Sara's laughter ringing in his ears behind him while he strode next to Kendra, a wide smile on his face as the two met each other's gaze. Something fizzed in his stomach. It was perfect. They could figure everything out on the ship.

"1958's swell and all," Kendra spoke to the rest of the team, "but I miss the Internet and cell phones."

"Agreed," Alex spoke up from Sara's other side. She sent a sympathetic smile Ray's way. He reciprocated the gesture. The sound of the Waverider taking off cut off his response, and soon the four of them were chasing after the machine.

"Uh what are they doing?" Ray asked, "Hey." He began to call after them, fruitlessly hoping that they would hear his cry.

Alex joined him in his crusade, "Hey!" She shouted, stopping halfway through the clearing, watching as the Waverider disappeared into the temporal zone, her chest heaving up and down, mouth flapping open in disbelief.

"Where did they go?" Kendra asked, sharing a confused look with Ray.

"Better question" Sara spoke up, the same look of disbelief on her face, "Why did they leave us?"

Ray kept his gaze firmly planted on Alex, watching as her frame slumped over, and he put the pieces together. She had left the extrapolator on the ship. She wasn't planning on leaving them at all. Except she was back where she started. Stuck on an Earth she didn't know, with no way home. They all were.


	10. Left Behind Pt 1 (m)

**_WARNING: SMUT AHEAD! If you are uncomfortable with it, don't like it, or aren't a fan of the Salex pairing, please feel free to ignore this chapter or skip past those scenes! I won't be offended I promise!_**

They had left her behind. They had left them behind. All of them had piled onto the ship, ready to go, not a care in the world, and they had just...left.

She tried to ignore the wetness dripping down her cheeks. The numbness she felt at thought of living another hundred years alone. The idea that she would have to watch her friends grow old and die together, while she lived on. Alone.

Ray's frantic words were like cotton in her ears, "We just have to stay calm." He told everyone, "Wherever they time-jumped- whenever- they'll come back to this exact same moment."

She wanted to believe him. She really did.

_Ten Minutes Later _

She was right. They weren't coming back. Ray was wrong this time. Alex leaned against the tree, knowing the only thing she could do now was move on, and try to help the others move on as well.

"They're not coming back." Sara reached out to Ray, all hope gone from her face, "Let's go."

Ray stammered, disbelief clouding his face as he tried to rationalize the situation, "Look, as a former Eagle Scout with over 100 merit badges, no big deal," He subtly bragged and Alex couldn't tell if it was for Kendra or not, "the first rule of getting lost is stay the same place." he spoke with such confidence, such faith, she almost believed him. "That way, you can be found."

Sara moved to confront him, "And as a former member of the League of Assassins," she name-dropped, "the first rule when you've been attacked is to keep moving."

To Alex's surprise, Kendra actually took Sara's side, "I sort of think League wisdom trumps the Eagle Scouts here." She announced, "Plus, Savage is still out there."

Ray shook his head, wanting to believe that the team would rescue them. Alex knew what that was like. To have hope that someone will come back when you knew they weren't.

"Guys, the rest of the team would not leave us marooned in 1958." Ray continued to push, holding onto whatever hope he had left of being rescued, "Alex back me up on this, you know they're coming back," He pleaded, turning to her for support. He'd always found it in her. But not this time.

"I'm sorry Ray," She whispered, "But Sara and Kendra are right. When people leave, they leave for good."

Ray's body slumped in defeat.

_Ten Hours Later _

Alex wrapped her arms around herself, rubbing them in order to try and keep herself semi-warm as she watched Sara hotwire the car they needed.

"One good thing about 1958," Sara spoke through gritted teeth, trying to hide the hurt she felt, "no car alarms."

Alex chuckled at her joke, trying to cheer up the mood.

Kendra peered closer at Sara's handiwork, "I didn't think they had cars in Nanda Parbat."

Sara smirked at the observation, "Dated a lot of delinquents as a teenager."

"Let me guess," Alex teased, trying to lighten things up, "Was one of those delinquents Oliver Queen?"

The engine turned over, starting the car and offering the group a chance at freedom. Sara stood up, a twinkle in her eye as she answered Alex's question, "Maybe."

Ray shook his head, eyes wide in worry, "And now we're the delinquents." He pointed out and Alex resisted the urge to refute his optimism, "If we leave Harmony Falls, how's the rest of the team gonna find us?"

Sara turned to face their hopeful friend, shoulders slumped, "We don't know if they're looking for us." She spoke up, saying what everyone had been thinking. And Alex couldn't help but agree. If they were looking for them they should've arrived back at the parking spot, "But we know Savage and his sidekick are," Sara reminded them, and Alex grew sober at the thought of Mandy. She was long gone at this point. "We can't take him. That means we can't stay here."

Alex nodded at the assassin and stepped into the shotgun position, calling out to the two lovebirds, "Let's go."

_Ten Days Later _

"You think this will actually work?" Alex asked, handing Ray parts from her spot on the floor.

Ray nodded, "Of course it will," he spoke with such confidence, Alex wanted to believe him, "I mean, it's not going to be as advanced as something from the 2010s, but it should suffice."

She shook her head, a smile on her face as she crossed her legs, watching the crease in Ray's eyebrow form as he worked. She swore it was the only time he never smiled.

Alex's heart thumped against her chest, stomach bubbling as she stared at the scientist before her, watching as the slightest curl of dark hair fell in his eyes, but he still pushed on, undeterred.

The sound of the door opening pulled her out of her stupor and she turned to face Kendra and Sara back from the store.

"Oh, what did you do to our apartment?" Sara looked both disgusted and impressed with the mess Ray had made. Alex sighed, preparing herself for the same spiel Ray had given to her when they began the project.

Ray's eyes lit up, his smile wide, "I'm creating a time beacon-" He began, continuing when he saw the looks of confusion on the other women's faces, "a transponder which matches the Waverider's quantum signature, basically creating a radio wave firewall that only our team can see."

Silence passed between the four of them until finally, Alex decided to break the tension. "It's a good idea."

Kendra shook her head at her boyfriend, "It's cute that you think any of us understood a word of that."

Surprisingly, Alex found herself agreeing with the demigoddess.

"But I hope it works." Kendra tried to boost his self-esteem, Ray sending her a bright smile her way.

Sara sighed as she looked around the apartment, blowing a hair out of her face, "In the meantime, maybe we should invest in some real beds."

"You mean you don't like sleeping on the hardwood floor?" Ray questioned, grabbing the part for his time beacon from Alex's hands, "I never would've guessed."

Alex smirked at his joke, readying one of her own, "She's just upset she doesn't have a place to bring home her booty calls." Ray and Kendra chuckled at her response, "What was that nurse's name again? Linda? Lana?"

Sara launched a playful kick in her direction, which she swiftly dodged. "I'm coming for you after I put these down," She threatened. Ray turned to face Alex, a playful look in his eyes.

"I'd start running," He advised. Alex stood up, Sara setting down the groceries and chasing her down the empty apartment, catching up to the taller Amazon (she let her win) and tackling her to the ground, where laughter shook her chest, staring up at the league member, a wide smile crossing her face.

"I win this time," Sara laughed back, standing up and pulling the brunette to her feet. Alex chuckled the tension away, walking over to the kitchen to see what Kendra and Sara had brought home.

She didn't want to get too close to the former assassin. She had learned her lesson with Ray, she didn't need to ruin her relationship with Sara too. 

That promise didn't last much longer once they got actual beds and started sharing rooms. Alex swore Sara was trying to get her to break.

The final instance was accidentally walking in on the Lance girl in the shower, cheeks blushing as Sara stood there, a smirk on her face as they interacted.

"What?" She teased, "You didn't see much of this on the Island?"

Alex rolled her eyes, the initial shock wearing off, playfully pushing Sara's shoulder as she went back to brushing her teeth, catching the soft curve of Sara's breasts in the reflection of the mirror, Hub city sun almost surrounding the assassin like a halo.

Alex forced herself to look away, so the blonde didn't think she was staring. Sara joined the brunette at the sink, dressed only in a shirt she was pretty sure Sara stole from Ray.

Their shoulders were touching, the smell of cheap floral shampoo weaving itself through Alex's nose as Sara moved closer, throwing her blonde curls into a bun while a smirk seemed permanently stuck on her face.

"I'm gonna take a day to myself," Sara announced, "I think I deserve it."  
Alex chuckled with a mouthful of toothpaste before spitting it into the sink, "Haven't you been doing that our entire time here?"

Sara bit her lip playfully, "Look, as long as Ray is able to provide for us, I think I'm entitled to a few days to myself."

"There's a difference between a few days and an entire month."

Sara pressed closer, height difference exaggerated as the space between them grew smaller. Alex's gaze flickered to the bottom half of Sara's face, unable to tear her eyes away from the subtle lick of her pink lips, the cheap shampoo becoming intoxicating, and there was something about knowing that she wasn't wearing anything underneath that sent Alex tingling.

Pinning Sara's shoulders against the wall, Alex pressed her lips against the other woman's, hands wandering down to the hem of the stolen shirt.

Fingernails dug into the skin of her thigh, wrapping Sara's leg around her waist, hips pressed together. Her tongue wandered the skin around her mouth before finding itself between Sara's lips again.

She bit down hard on Sara's bottom lip as they pulled apart, a soft moan leaving the assassin's lips. Her hands wandered inward, toward her core, finger slipping inside her. Sara's hot breath blew past her shoulder, exciting Alex between her thighs, the assassin clawing at the material covering Alex's shoulders, nails threatening to burrow into her skin.

Alex ceased her actions when she heard Sara wince. "Do you wanna stop?"

Sara shook her head, grabbing Alex's hand and repositioning it, "There," she whined, "That's better," Her shoulders relaxed, shutting her eyes as sounds of pleasure passed her lips. Alex continued to stroke upward, slowly at first.

She teased the sides of her lower lips, playing with the folds before continuing her strokes, faster this time.

Alex slipped the appendage out, snaking her hand around Sara's waist, placing her on the sink, spreading her thighs open.

She was ravenous, nipping the areas around Sara's neck, sucking at the skin. Everything she had been holding inside was released in this one singular act.

She massaged Sara' s thighs, each kiss pressed to the skin; a geyser of emotion breaking free. She peppered the pelvis with lovebites, tongue following the curve straight to the bundle of nerves that waited for her.

She teased the small knot, pressing her lips to the area surrounding it, Sara's whimpers letting her know that she was going about this the right way. Her tongue moved downward, licking up the wetness that had begun to form, relishing in the taste that passed her lips. She pressed further inward, lips fluttering near Sara's folds before pulling back out, finally locking around her core, sucking the knot before letting her tongue massage it.

She finished by licking her lips and fluttering her lips against Sara's.

Alex strode away, shutting the door behind her, feeling more relaxed than she had in years. 

Christmas, Alex was learning, was one of Ray Palmer's favorite holidays. They were close to a few days away and Ray was asking her opinion on another gift for Kendra.

"Didn't you already get her like five others?" She asked, taking a sip from her coffee, the drink warming up her freezing hands.

"Yeah, but I feel like I need something more." Ray protested. Silence stood between the two of them as they looped around the park again, both trying to get some fresh air and enjoying some time away from their relationships.

If you could even call what she and Sara had a relationship. It was more of a casual fling with an understanding that they wouldn't sleep with anyone else. There were no feelings involved.

"So what are you getting Sara?" Ray asked, gently nudging her shoulder. Alex chuckled before tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. Her heart still pounded when Ray drew too close, she still felt her cheeks getting red when he complimented her. Her stomach twisted every time she saw him and Kendra together.

A few weeks didn't change that.

"Uh, nothing," Alex responded, trying to focus on the conversation, "Sara said she didn't want anything this year."

Ray squinted, his eyebrows scrunched together as he tried to process that information. Alex had to force herself not to laugh. He looked to confused as to why someone wouldn't want to celebrate Christmas.

"Everyone wants something on Christmas," He tried to rationalize, "I mean, come on, It's Christmas."

Alex shrugged, "I told her I didn't want to celebrate either." She finally admitted. That seemed to push Ray even further into the realm of disbelief, stopping the scientist in his tracks.

"Whoa, okay, I expect that from Sara," He began, "But I don't know, I guess I just figured you'd be the type to celebrate."

Alex debated telling him the truth. Telling him why she doesn't celebrate and why it's one of the worst days of the year. But that would mean being vulnerable with him, and she couldn't afford to do that. It would mean more chest constrictions when she saw him and Kendra snuggle, it would mean expecting something out of her relationship with Sara, it would mean opening herself up to scrutiny.

"I don't like the holiday that much," Was what she said, hoping it would be enough to dissuade Ray from asking any more questions. It didn't.

"Why?" He pressured.

Alex whipped around to face him, annoyance written on her face as her lips drew themselves tightly together. "Because I don't, okay Ray?" Her words were curt, cutting off any future interaction.

Ray retreated back into himself, a sheepish look crossing his face as he nodded slightly. They continued their walk back to the apartment back in silence, the snow a hindrance rather than the charming weather they both loved.

Christmas came and went. No one bought anyone any gifts and Ray didn't talk to her the entire day.

Alex sighed as she crawled next to Sara that night, her arm wrapping itself around the smaller woman, tracing the curves of her thighs, following them up to her waist.

"Did you have a good birthday?" She asked, playing with the ends of Sara's blonde hair.

Sara leaned up at her question, "Actually I did." She admitted, "No one acknowledged it except you, and that's all that matters to me."

The Amazon chuckled at her compliment, pressing her lips to Sara's. The gesture was soft and when she went to pull away, Sara's teeth bit into her lip, keeping her in place. Alex moved in for another kiss, electrifying her spine, each time their lips met she craved more. More than just the fervent movement between her and Sara, more than the rough tugging on her hair before they pulled apart.

Lips still touching, Alex wrapped her hand around the curve of Sara's ass, wrenching her across her lap, massaging the back of her thigh, relishing in the feeling of skin touching skin, of Sara's hips rolling against hers, back and forth...back and forth.

Sara moved her lips to her cheek, nipping at the dark skin, following the sharp angles of her jaw until her teeth dug into the helix of her ear. Alex's chest heaved.

"Who would've thought?" Sara chuckled, voice low, sultry. "The princess likes to be topped."

"You gonna just sit there," Alex panted, a smirk crossing her face, "Or are you gonna show me what you got?"

"You asked for it," Sara teased back, pressing the brunette into the bed, fingernails scratching her forearms before pinning her wrists together against the headboard, teeth nipping at the curve of her collarbone, the rhythm of her hips moving faster, her free hand pushing up the hem of Alex's shirt, tracing the curve of her waist, pressing into the soft skin below her breasts. Sara's lips rimmed Alex's nipple, and the brunette arched her back, the moan softly squeezing past her lips.

Alex gripped the ass of the woman on top of her, Sara's thumb playing with the string of her underwear, her finger slipping past the barrier. The limb pushed itself inside Alex, playing with her lower lips before slipping out once again, the tease agitating the Amazon, her hands breaking free from the position Sara had put them in to grab a fistful of the blonde's hair, pulling her head back.

The assassin elicited a moan of pleasure at the act, her mouth drawing itself upward into a smirk.

"I thought I was in charge here." She quipped.

Alex brought Sara's face closer to hers, growling, "then prove it."

She released her hold on Sara's hair, pushing their faces together in another heated collision, kisses quick, fervent, whirlwinds.

Sara's hips thrust against hers, her hand dropping between Alex's thighs, stroking her core back and forth overtop her underwear. It was teasing her, so tantalizingly close, but so agonizingly far.

"You like that?" Sara asked, the tiniest bit of concern hidden in the sultry tone that she had been using the whole night.

A moaned 'yes' was all the assassin needed to continue going. She picked up speed, and Alex could feel the pressure building up between her thighs, ready to spill out at the perfect moment.

Sara's fingers moved to the band of her underwear, tearing them downward, and Alex kicked off the remaining cloth onto the floor, lips meeting Sara's again.

This time the blonde pinned her against the headboard, thrusting her hips forward to force the Amazon to remain in that position.

The shivers down her back were electrifying, and Sara nipped at her neck again, her hand stroking the bare lower lips of the Amazon, fingers playing with the folds before inserting them inside of her, relishing in the wetness that greeted her. Her strokes picked up speed, roughing up the silky walls before watching Alex relax against the bed, closing her eyes and whining. Sara began to slow down, her touches becoming gentle as she slipped out, pressing Alex's thighs open as she scooted down, pressing her lips to the bare skin around her belly button, and then the crook between her pelvis, massaging her thighs. Until finally Sara's lips surged forward, fluttering against her inner thigh, and then her folds, before rimming her core.

Her tongue moved back and forth, licking up the wetness that was beginning to pool. Alex whimpered and grasped the top of Sara's head, fistfuls of hair the only thing grounding her to the bed, keeping Sara's head in place.

Alex closed her eyes, tilting her head back against the wall, arching her back every time Sara went in for more.

This...she decided, was the perfect Christmas gift. 

**Ahhhh. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I was REALLY worried about posting it, so I hope you like it! Please favorite and review!**


	11. What Cooking Can Do

"I hate men" was all Alex said as she climbed into the seat next to Sara, who was trying to keep a straight face through it all.

"Let me guess," The blonde replied, starting the stolen car, "You didn't get the job."

Alex sighed, leaning her head against the back of the leather seat, "No," she pursed her lips, "The interviewer said there was no way I knew enough about Greece's Archaic Period." She shook her head biting her lip in frustration, "My Mom grew up in the Archaic Period!" she protested, ignoring the smirk growing across Sara's face, "I had a vase from Ancient Athens in my room for a good sixteen years!"

The only thing Sara did in response was chuckle, brushing her hand up and down Alex's arm, trying to soothe her. It wasn't working.

Her anger was clawing at her stomach. The ride back to the apartment was silent, another job to cross off the list. The January snow was little more than an inch and crunched under their heels as they walked up the tall building to the fourth floor, Alex angrily jamming the key into the door and turning it.

"I'm just tired of getting rejected," She continued, setting her jacket on the coatrack they had purchased a week ago, "I just want to interview for a job without having to worry about my skin tone or gender accidentally 'offending' the interviewer." Her tone was sarcastic, reciting the same excuse the last man had used to refuse her a job handing out tickets at a theatre. Sara pulled her in for a hug, gently stroking her back.

"Hey," She began, "It's gonna be okay, you'll get there eventually."

Alex pulled away, nodding before pressing forward, catching sight of Kendra and Ray finishing up dinner and starting to wash the dishes.

"Hey!" Ray's cheery voice usually made her feel better, but today it sent annoyance spurring in her stomach, causing it to twist. "How'd the interview go?"

Alex couldn't take it anymore. Turning back around, she found the door to her and Sara's room, shutting it behind her and collapsing on the bed. Staring up at the ceiling, she began to wonder if it was worth it.

If trying to make it in this world again was worth it. She couldn't get a job, she couldn't contact her friends, and she was stuck with the world's most annoying couple.

The knock on her door drew her out of her self-pity.

"Hey" Sara spoke softly, kneeling on the edge of the bed, "I know today was rough, but Ray made pasta," Alex turned to face the assassin, "And it would be rude not to eat it."

She chuckled, continuing to stare up at the ceiling for a few minutes before pulling her torso off the mattress, her lips twisting sideways into a smile, "Why are you always right?"

Sara tilted her head, biting her lip, "Because I'm smarter?" She teased, causing Alex to send a pillow flying her way, which she barely dodged. For the first time that day, Alex let herself laugh.

Her cheeks hurt by the time they wandered out to the table, finishing up the leftover pasta and trying to concentrate on something other than her numerous rejections this past month.

Trying to ignore the stirring in her chest when she met Ray's gaze.

And the emptiness she always felt when she kissed Sara.

She was temporary. A simple fix to a much more complicated problem. And she wasn't ready to face that yet.

The ticking of the clock was the only sound in the apartment. Everyone else had gone to bed a long time ago, and Alex was still up, a small lamp her only light as she peered over her resume.

She supposed it didn't look good that she didn't really work much prior to 1958.

It wasn't her fault a lot of the companies she had worked for didn't exist on this Earth.

She sighed, trying to figure out what exactly she could change to make herself more marketable.

To get them to look past the color of her skin and the gender she identified as.

Footsteps pulled her attention to the kitchen, where she caught sight of a familiar tall figure reaching into the fridge to try and find something to eat.

"Sara and I ate the last of your pasta," She made her presence known, causing Ray to jump before smiling and closing the door. Alex chuckled at his mannerisms, even scared, he still found a way to smile. "I'd offer you some of my chips and hummus," She continued, "But Sara told me you were allergic to gluten"

Ray strode over to the living room, his pajama pants dragging on the floor as he crossed his arms, "Well at least someone remembers," he joked, but there was something else behind it, something a bit mirthless. Like he truly was upset that only Sara seemed to know that about him.

Alex creased her eyebrows and stood up, pushing past Ray to grab her keys and stuff them in her pockets, checking her watch. It was almost 11:00 pm, he would be closing soon, but they could get there fast.

She popped another chip in her mouth, grabbing Ray's jacket from the coat rack and tossing it to him, "Come on, go grab your shoes," She instructed, her words muffled by the snacks in her mouth.

"What-what are you doing?" Ray asked, eyes squinting in confusion. Alex moved her hands in circles, trying to tell him to hurry up.

"We're going shopping, but we gotta hurry." She explained, "Now go get your shoes on."

Ray moved to the bench by the door, where he started to tie his nice shoes on. Alex stared as she leaned against the wall, her slippers halfway on.

Ray shrugged his shoulders, "They were the only ones close by."

Alex chuckled and shook her head, pulling her coat around her as she and Ray ventured out into the cold air.

"Care to tell me what we're doing?" Ray asked, trying to fill the silence as they walked. Alex stopped at the sidewalk, trying to remember which way the shop was. Once they got on their way, she double-checked her watch.

Five minutes, they could make it in time.

"We are going shopping," She announced, a wide smile on her face.

Ray stifled his laugh, "At eleven o'clock at night?"

"Technically, it's ten fifty-five," Alex corrected him, trying to recall the familiar path in the dark, "And yes, we are, because you deserve some damn good gluten-free snacks."

He scoffed, "Good luck trying to find them in this economy,"

"That's why you have me!" Alex perked up, their adventure cheering up her down spirits, maybe it was because someone else needed help. "One of the perks of being friends with an immortal who has lived for over ninety-seven years-" They rounded the corner and her smile grew wider when she saw that the store was still open, "Is that I know all the best places to buy cheap food when you need it."

She grasped Ray's hand and pulled him forward, rushing across the parking lot, hoping that he would let them in past closing time.

He was just closing up when they reached the doors.

"Not tonight chiquita," Sal sighed when he caught sight of her, "I need to get home to Francesca," His gaze moved to Ray beside her, "And I told you no more dates in my store," he added in Spanish.

"Sal, please," Alex ignored the blush forming on her cheeks from the insinuation, "My friend has no food, we just need a few minutes and then we'll be out of there okay?"

Silence hung between the store owner and his best customer. Alex found herself holding out hope, praying that her sympathy plea would be enough. The fact that Ray was in his pajamas lent itself to the lie, and she could see the wheels turning in Sal's head.

"Fine," He responded in English, holding out the keys to the store, "You know where to put them when you're finished."

She fist-pumped the air, bringing a kiss to Sal's cheek, "Muchas Gracias," She responded, grabbing the keys and gesturing for Ray to follow her.

He was stopped halfway by Sal, "If you hurt her," The store owner began in Spanish, "I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth and rip you apart piece by piece until I can sell your meat in my deli."

Ray's eyes widened at the clear threat, even though he didn't understand much of what he was saying and nodded, following Alex into the store. Her cheeks turned red at the threat and she chastised the old man before he left to crawl into his car.

"That was impressive," Ray responded, and Alex's stomach jumped at the compliment, tucking a piece of hair behind her ears.

"Okay," She diffused the tension, grabbing a cart, "Now, what are you looking for?"

They wandered the store for a good ten minutes, Alex grabbing gluten-free alternatives to her own favorite snacks, and then grabbing her favorite hummus, cause she was almost out anyway.

Ray was still stuck in the chip aisle when she finished finding everything that she needed. He was staring at the ingredients on the bag, his forehead creased like it did when he was working on an especially tough project, and Alex's lips perked upward at the sight. She couldn't help it, she decided as her chest pounded, Ray just looked too cute standing there trying to decide what chips to eat.

"Made a decision yet?" She joked.

Ray turned away from the chips to meet her teasing gaze, "This is a hard decision," he justified, "I mean, do I go with the lime flavored ones and no dip? Or do I go for the scoops which are perfect for dipping?" He stared between the two purple bags, biting his cheek in frustration, "and then dips are a whole other issue altogether-"  
Reaching over, Alex grabbed both bags and threw them in the cart, "The answer is to get both" She told him, "That way you cut your shopping time down."

Ray chuckled and her stomach leaped again. He was feeling better. She was making him feel better.

"Besides, if you don't like them I'll eat 'em" Alex nudged his shoulder, and he followed her to the checkout, where she finished calculating everything.

Ray was bagging everything and she felt a tap on her shoulder, causing her to turn around, where she saw him holding the bag of pitas she had picked up.

"Um, gluten-free remember?" He pointed out.

Alex rolled her eyes, turning over the bag, "And if you look at the ingredients…" She pointed out the type of flour used, "You'll see that I did remember."

Something unusual passed over Ray's eyes and Alex turned away before she could get a better look, but she swore she saw a smile.

When all was said and done, they had left Sal a generous tip and locked the door behind them, leaving the keys in the lockbox and heading home.

She couldn't explain why she felt so much lighter after the outing. She just did. It was like all of her problems had floated away.

Ray looked happier too, and that was what pleased her the most. He had looked so down at the beginning of the night and now here he was, a wide smile on his face and recounting old stories.

"Oh man, I remember this one time," He began another one, "We were playing tag, and the way they play it is a mixture of hide and seek, and I hid in the sewer pipes" he chuckled at the memory, "They never found me and I ended up winning."

Alex's laugh bounced off the walls of the complex, pushing the door open so they could get out of the cold. She gently set the groceries down, grabbing what she needed to make the snack that had been on her mind all night.

"Oh man," Ray spoke happily, "Now I don't know how I'm gonna get to sleep after all that."

Alex smiled, grabbing the skillet from underneath the sink, setting up her workspace. She always planned to cook tonight, but maybe she wasn't the only one who needed it.

Maybe Ray needed a cooking night just as much as she did.

"Do you wanna help me?" She shook her box of spices she had accumulated over the past few weeks, "I'm making gyros, gluten-free" She made sure to add.

Ray shook his head, "Nah, I should get to bed, I mean, it is late."

"Oh come on!" Alex pleaded, grabbing hold of his arm, enjoying the feel of her bare skin against his, "It'll be so much fun, and I bet you've never had one before."

Ray bobbed his head, "Actually I have," he defended, "Florence, my senior year of college."

Alex rolled her eyes, "Well you haven't had mine, and I make the best gyros ever." She bragged. She didn't know why she was pushing so hard. Her cooking nights were hers. Before she had gone off on her own, they were shared with her mom. A way for them to bond, to learn a skill that wasn't fighting or strategy.

A way for them to have a semblance of normalcy in their lives. A way for them to act like a family. Like the ones she had seen strolling around the park.

Like the ones that had attended her high school and picked up their kids.

The one she wished she would've had.

"Alright," Ray finally answered, joining her by the warming skillet, "But just one and then it's bedtime." He smirked, popping one of the gluten-free chips they had recently bought in his mouth, washing his hands and drying them off with a towel.

"Okay, what do we do to start?"

Alex smiled and grabbed the chicken, pulling out a cutting board and handing it to Ray. "Okay, so first we need to slice these into thin, thin pieces," She emphasized, remembering what had happened the first time she tried to make one and the pieces were too big.

"Aye, aye captain," Ray joked, getting to work on the chicken while she began to make the sauce to marinate the meat in.

She was just finishing adding the oregano when she caught sight of Ray's slicing job. Sighing she turned to the inventor, cocking an eyebrow.

"What?" Ray asked when he caught her stare. Alex giggled.

"You call that thin?"

The meat was the width of her pinky finger, the same mistake she had made all those years ago. She stepped in, bringing Ray's arms around her and covering his hands to teach him the proper way to slice the chicken.

"You have to not be afraid of the knife," Alex instructed, grabbing hold of Ray's fingers and wrapping them around the handle, his head hanging over her shoulder to look at her technique.

"You grab the chicken, and when I say thin, I mean thin." She continued, using Ray's hands in order to help him learn, "and gently," She sliced through the meat, pausing as the knife hit the cutting board, gulping down the nerves that had found their way into her throat, the closeness of his arms around her body forcing a realization into her brain.

Recognizing the position she had put herself in.

Ray's breath was hot on her bare shoulder, the scent of vanilla and sandalwood weaving through her nostrils, sending her pulse racing.

His hands were soft, thumb curling around her own as she moved in for another slice.

She dropped the knife and plastered a smile on her face, turning around to face him, hoping she didn't look as mortified as she felt.

"Just like that," Alex refused to do anything else but smile, knowing if she did, Ray would catch on, and she couldn't-she wouldn't come between Ray and Kendra.

"Oh," Ray said in response, his lips perking upward, showing his teeth, "That makes much more sense."

Alex nodded, turning back around and moving back to the bowl of spices, adding in the lemon juice and swirling it around, trying not to think about the moment that had just passed.

Her pulse was off the charts and she forced herself to breathe to calm herself down, hands shaking as she grabbed the slices of chicken and mixed them into the bowl, instructing Ray to begin constructing the actual sandwich while she plastic-wrapped the meat and placed it in the fridge, setting her watch for one hour.

Ray had finished with both pitas, a wide smile on his face as he presented them to her like she was Gordon Ramsey. A giggle left her mouth.

"Perfect," She validated him, "Now they go into the fridge until the timer is done." She gestured to her watch, moving back to the living room, pulling at her tank top as she collapsed on the couch, staring at her resumes, remembering why she needed a cooking night in the first place.

Ray sat crisscross on the other side of the coffee table, handing her a mug of something.

She took a sip, straightening up when she realized that it was peppermint hot chocolate.

Her favorite. How did he know?

"I figured you might want something sweet," He explained, "My Grandma used to make peppermint hot chocolate whenever she was feeling down, I guess I picked up the habit."

Alex smiled softly at his words. No one had ever done much for her. Sara comforted her and spent time with her, but this...this is what sealed the deal.

This was why she loved Ray Palmer.

Her expression dropped as the thought crossed her mind. No. She didn't love him. She hardly knew him.

It was a very strong like. She tried to convince herself. That's all it was. She couldn't be in love with him.

It was friend love. Yes, that made sense. Friend love. It couldn't be more than that. Just good old platonic love. That was it. That's why the thought had crossed her mind. It hadn't been romantic love. Only platonic love.

"Your resume isn't that bad," Ray responded, placing the paper back on the table, "I think you just need to use the appropriate buzzwords." He advised, and from the look on his face, Alex knew he was thinking back to his years in business school.

"Really?" She asked, drawing a skeptical brow upward, "You think that's all I need to do?"

"Well yeah," Ray scooted closer, "See here?" He pointed at the experience section, "It just says moderated exhibits and gave tours of the archaic period," Alex nodded, she didn't see where he was going with this. Ray pursed his lips, looking around the room before crawling over to the end table, bringing a pen back to the stack of resumes.

"If you said something like, 'curated exhibits from archaic Grecian artists' or something like that," Ray began, writing his ideas down, "and 'introduced patrons to new cultural experiences' it sounds more professional," He finally decided, handing the resume back to her.

Now that Alex was looking at it, she finally understood what he was saying. He was right. It sounded more professional. Like she knew what she was talking about.

"Huh," Was all that came out of her mouth. She was speechless. Ray had completely changed her mind about job hunting. With stuff like this, she might be able to get through an interview.

"Thanks," She responded, finally settling on a word to show her gratitude, fully aware that it wasn't nearly enough.

Ray had probably saved her career. Certainly saved her from going bankrupt in 1959.

They continued rewriting her resumes for the next hour, finishing with the final one by the time the meat was done cooling. She pulled it free from the saran wrap and placed it on the hot grill, turning it over while Ray told her stories of his childhood again, mentioning his twin brother and his mom's support.

"She always loved each of my inventions," He continued, a fond look swirling in his irises, "She used to say they were her favorite part of the day,"

Alex smiled at that, finally stuffing the pitas and handing his gyro to him. "She sounds awesome,"

Ray smiled, "She is."

He leaned in to bite into the sandwich, ready to taste their creation when she stopped him with two words.

"My Dad." She announced, Ray froze and shut his mouth to look at her. Alex swallowed, trying to ignore the wetness building in the corner of her eyes.

"What?"

"You asked me why I don't like Christmas," She explained, finally ready to tell him, "It used to be my favorite holiday. The trees, the gifts." She pursed her lips, recalling the awful memory, "My uh, My dad died saving the allies in World War One,"

"Oh my god," Ray reached over, grabbing her hand in his, "Alex I'm so sorry."

She shrugged, like it was nothing. Like it was the changing weather. "When I was uh, when I was fourteen my grandma thought it would be a good time to tell me about my dad." She pulled her hand from Ray's, not needing this be any harder than it already was.

"Worst Christmas gift ever." She finally said, biting into her gyro, relishing in the taste of her comfort food. It traveled all the way to her stomach, settling and causing the tension in her shoulders to release.

She had opened up with Ray.

She had been vulnerable with him.

Just like he had with her.

Ray creased his brows together, clearly regretting asking about it in the first place, "I'm sorry."

"Thanks," was all she said in response. Silence hung between them, like it always did when she told people about her dad. They never knew what to say.

She never did either.

How do you tell people someone you love died without bringing down the mood? How do you move past that conversation?

Usually, people just stopped talking to her. Tip-toed around her, making sure they didn't mention death in any form. Making sure they didn't say anything that might trigger her.

She almost wished they did.

She wanted someone to prove they cared. Wanted someone to do something other than say they're sorry.

But she never got that. Instead, all she got were condolences and pity. She was used to it at this point. Ninety-seven years of telling the same story got old fast.

Death may have stopped for her, but life didn't stop for death.

She had to keep moving.

Ray turned back to his sandwich taking the first bite, his eyes widening as he did. "Holy shit," He cursed, expression growing wider at the word that slipped past his mouth and Alex's laugh echoed through the kitchen.

"This is really good." He smiled through his bites, and soon the gyro was gone, crumbs the only trace that it had existed in the first place.

Alex shook her head at his behavior, glad to have a friend again.


	12. Stay Stay Stay

Alex came home from her job at the Hub City Museum to discover Sara and Kendra playing a very busy game of life on the floor of the apartment, blankets strewn everywhere.

"Looks like the blanket fort didn't last very long," Alex teased, placing her stuff down and shoving her coat onto the rack.

"Congratulations." Sara told Kendra, "You are a doctor." She handed the other woman a card before turning to face the Alex at the door, "You're home early." Her tone was surprised, and Alex gestured to herself, as if to say that her presence was a gift.

"You know, I thought about going to medical school once." Kendra interrupted their moment, drawing Sara's attention back to the game of life, and Alex moved to check in on Ray in the kitchen. He had gotten the time beacon back out again.

"Ooh," Alex teased, "He's back at it again!"

Ray chuckled at her response, "I picked up some of that hummus you like," he mentioned, gesturing to the fridge, "I noticed you were running out, and Sal says hi by the way."

"I feel so bad," Alex spoke as she grabbed the chips and dip, "I haven't been by in ages, but I'm sure he's happy to see you."

Ray tilted his head, a slight grimace on his face, "I don't think so, he's always murmuring Spanish at me. I don't know what he's saying but his tone is not pleasant."

Alex chuckled at the thought of Sal threatening Ray every time he walked into the convenience store.

A beeping echoed through the apartment, signaling what they had been waiting to hear for so long.

"Yes!" Ray cheered, "The time beacon radio is officially complete." He announced to the room, causing Kendra and Sara to stop their game of life and join the two of them at the table.

Alex leaned in, eager to return back to the timeship.

"Okay, here we go. Come on." Ray rubbed his hands together before pressing a button, causing the device to start lighting up, "Hope there's a spot on that game that says "Return to the Waverider," because that's what's about to happen." he bragged, hitting another button, "Here we go."

The device whirred back and forth, and for a minute it looked like they had hope.

That the Waverider might actually find them.

That they could actually go home.

And then sparks flew, and the sound of it powering down was all that could be heard. Alex sent him a look of sympathy. She knew how hard he had worked on that. It had been their only hope.

"I-uh, I just have to fix a few of the kinks." Ray told himself, although Alex could tell he didn't believe his own words, "The next version will be much less explosive."

"Next version?" Sara turned to face Kendra and Alex, "I thought you two said you were gonna say something to him" Her words were curt, cold and unkind.

Alex flapped her mouth back and forth, trying to figure out the right words to placate her.

Ray looked between the three women, "Say what?" he asked, his wide smile still on his face and Alex's chest ached at the news they would have to tell him.

Sara told him instead, "that your beacon it's a waste of time." She responded coldly, "They're not coming back, Ray." She was delving deeper into her spiral, she had been for the past two weeks. "And it's not because the Waverider is broken, or they're lost, or they can't find us," Sara continued, Alex trying to step in and comfort her before things got out of hand, "or whatever. It's because they're dead." Ray and Kendra looked taken aback at her declaration. Alex sighed.

"Sara," She began, "Come on, let's go-"

She didn't listen, "And the sooner that you accept that, the sooner you can move on the sooner we can all move on." Sara huffed and turned around disappearing into their shared room.

Ray called after, scoffing at her words, "So what? We're just supposed to give up?"

Alex felt pulled in two directions. One was the person she had fostered a relationship with, someone she had leaned one her entire time here. The other was her best friend, someone she needed in her life.

She couldn't make the decision, so Sara made it for her.

"On being rescued, yeah."

"Sara come on," Alex tried to appeal to her, not even believing the words coming out of her mouth, "We can work through this. Sara, what are you doing?"

She reappeared with a duffel bag in hand, jacket in the other, refusing to look at anyone, especially Alex. But the brunette knew what she was up to. She knew what Sara was doing.

"You're leaving?"

She almost looked apologetic, eyes wet with unshed tears as she met Alex's gaze, "I can't stay here." Her voice cracked, and she cleared her throat, trying to keep up her facade, "I need to find somewhere I belong."

Alex moved forward, grabbing Sara's hand in her own, "You belong with me," The familiar prickling in her nose was irritating her, pressure building behind her eyes, "You belong here, with us." She tasted salt on her lips, "You can't go," She whispered, voice thick with unsaid emotion.

Instead of addressing Alex, she turned to Ray and Kendra, still trying to hide how she was really feeling about leaving, "Savage is still out there." She warned the couple, tearing her hand out of Alex's, "Don't draw undue attention on yourselves."

"Sara-" Kendra spoke up from the kitchen.

The blonde shook her head, closing her eyes, "Look, you two have each other." She focused on instead, and it was like rubbing salt in the wound, she was leaving Alex alone with them, "Most people, in any time period, aren't that lucky. Take care."

She pushed in closer, wiping the tear from Alex's face and whispered a request, "Come with me."

It was simple. It would be so simple. To run away with her. Away from Savage, away from the drama that plagued their life, to spend the rest of her life with the beautiful woman before her, and forget about every responsibility weighing them down.

But Alex knew she could never do that.

She owed it to the Legends to finish this mission.

She knew they were coming back. Even if her heart didn't believe it.

She wanted more than anything to run away with Sara, but she knew she couldn't.

She was her mother's daughter.

It was her greatest pride and her greatest flaw.

Alex couldn't abandon Ray and Kendra. Just like she couldn't let Sara walk out on her own.

"Stay," Alex spoke quietly, grabbing both of Sara's hands in her own, kissing the tops of her knuckles. Ignoring the stinging in her chest that told her nothing she said would work. "Please."

Sara turned her gaze toward the ground, and Alex bit her cheek.

"You know I can't." Sara finally replied, tears finally starting to trickle down her cheeks. She wiped the one's on Alex's face, the gesture only causing more to fall. Sara brought the Amazon in for a hug, standing on her tip-toes as she whispered a final goodbye in her ear, "I'm so sorry Alex."

She pulled her fingers from Alex's grip, her hand a phantom against Alex's as she watched Sara's retreating figure close the door, not looking back.

Numbness stirred in her stomach, the sharp pain in her chest growing worse as she stood there, staring at the empty air. The very place where Sara had stood. Where she had whispered goodbye. Where she hadn't even considered staying for her.

Because she wasn't worth staying for.

The salt water burned her cheeks as it trickled down her skin, Alex gritting her teeth in an attempt to stop them from coming. But it didn't work.

Because She was alone.

Again.

_Four Months Later _

She was floating.

Wake. Work. Eat. Sleep.

Wake. Work. Eat. Sleep.

Wake. Work. Eat. Sleep.

Wake. Work. Eat. Sleep.

That's all she did anymore. She gripped the blankets closer to her. The blankets that she and Sara had shared. That she and Sara had slept on.

They were freshly washed.

Any trace of her scent gone.

Just like her.

She had been gone for months.

Ray and Kendra didn't seem to care. They just moved on. Like life was always like this. No Sara. Like their friend hadn't abandoned them.

_Because I wasn't worth staying for,_ Alex told herself._ I never have been._

And it made sense.

She had been using Sara. She was never interested in her. Sara had been temporary.

Everything in her life was always temporary.

Nothing in her life ever stayed. No one ever stayed.

She was the common denominator. She was the reason people left. She was the problem.

And she was supposed to fix problems.

She was always supposed to fix problems. But she had failed.

She had failed Mandy.

And now she had failed Sara.

She was a failure. She was the problem.

And she needed to be solved.

She needed to distance herself. If she never gets close to Ray and Kendra, then she can never fail them.

She can never let them down.

She needed to distance herself. It was the only way.

A knock on her door tried to pull her out of her stupor. It didn't succeed.

"Alex?"

Ray. She reminded herself. Distance yourself. It's the only way to make sure you don't let them down. It's the only way to keep them with you.

"Hey, we uh, we made gyros," He spoke through the door, "Or tried to anyway. You wanna talk?"

_Distance_. She reminded herself. _Distance._

"Alex?" Ray asked again, "Can you come out? Please? I miss-We miss you."

Silence was her only response.


	13. Light Up The Night Sky

The bell of the bakery rang in her ears, and she tried to ignore the chatters of excitement rising up from the full tables, American flag printed bunting everywhere she looked.

She rolled her eyes, standing in line with her arms crossed, trying to ignore the dirty looks people sent her way. She was almost near the counter, getting ready to order when a man in a business suit cut in front of her, placing his order.

"Excuse me?" She asked, but no one seemed to hear her. When she asked again, all it led to was a nasty look thrown her way from the woman behind her.

Alex bit her cheek, anger growling in her stomach at the behavior of the people in the shop.

She stepped up to the counter, bills in hand and began to place her order.

"Hi" She plastered a fake smile on her face, "I'd like-"

"I'm sorry," The teenager behind the register began, "But we can't serve you."

An involuntary laugh slipped past her lips, "I'm sorry?" Alex asked, unable to keep the surprise off her face. "Why not? I have money."

The teenager shrugged, his greased back hair shining under the fluorescent lights, "It's company policy."

Alex inhaled sharply.

She knew what he meant by that and gracefully stepped out of line.

Gritting her teeth, she pushed past the rest of the people in line and strode to her car, slamming the door shut and screaming out all of her frustration.

She was sick of it.

Her hands slammed against the wheel.

Sick of this city. Sick of the people in the fifties. Sick of being treated like she was a lesser human being because of her gender and the color of her skin.

She was so sick of it!

She wished more than anything that the Waverider would appear right then and there and beam her up, but she knew that was as likely as Sara coming back.

So instead she turned the car on and headed home, empty-handed.

She was almost to the apartment when she caught sight of the street that led to Sal's store. Deciding that he might have some form of cake she could consume, she turned the car, following the bumpy road to the giant parking lot, stuffing her keys in her pocket as she reached the door.

_"Hola, Sal!"_ She greeted, elbows pressing against the counter where he worked.

_"Chiquita!"_ He bellowed, leaning over to give her a kiss on the cheek, _"Feliz cumpleaños!"_

She smiled at his response,_ "Muchas Gracias,"_ Alex thanked him and took a look around the store, turning back to ask him, _"¿tienes pastelitos?"_ Her hands formed a circle, letting him know the size she was looking for as well.

A thoughtful expression passed over Sal's face before he left the counter, moving toward the back before he came out with a small purple box in his hands, "Francesa made one too many for her friends" He responded in English, "They're red velvet, your favorite."

Alex's stomach leaped at the gesture. He remembered. At least someone did.

"Thank you, Sal," She pressed a kiss to his cheek, "How much?"

The owner shook his head, "Consider it a gift for one of my favorite customers." His eyes twinkled and she moved in for a hug, letting him know that his gift was much appreciated.

"Tell Francesca thanks," Alex responded, "I can't wait to eat it."

Sal chuckled and patted her shoulder, disappearing behind the register once again.

Unsure of what else to do, Alex stepped outside, her eyes still on the box even as she slid behind the wheel again.

She couldn't stop the smile that was forming on her face.

* * *

Alex blew out a sigh as she stepped out of the car to the apartment. As she passed the Fourth of July posters surrounding her, she resisted the urge to tear them down.

She never liked the holiday. It was just an excuse for the country to pat itself on the back when it didn't deserve it

There was only one reason to celebrate it at all, and apparently she was the only one to remember it. Well, the fireworks weren't bad either.

The sound of noisemakers and yells greeted her as she entered the apartment, almost causing her to drop the box she held in her hand.

"Happy Birthday!" Kendra and Ray cried in unison gesturing to the streamers and balloons they had strewn around the apartment, a soft sound of a kazoo coming from the kitchen.

"We didn't know which one you preferred," Ray began to talk, "Kendra said streamers, I said balloons, so we got both of them!"

Alex couldn't stop her lips from perking up at the thoughtful gesture. They remembered.

Warmth filled her chest and stomach at the thought.

They had remembered her birthday.

"We didn't know what kind of cake you wanted," Kendra spoke up from the kitchen, "But Ray swears he heard you say red velvet one time, so that's what we got."

"Well Ray's right," Alex chuckled, her smile growing wider as she moved toward the kitchen, catching two rectangular packages wrapped in deconstructed paper bags. One slightly smaller than the other.

Ray pulled out the chair for her, "Your throne Princess Alexandra," He spoke in an overly formal voice, calling back to their conversation after the gulag.

She'd never heard her full name out of his mouth before.

She liked it.

Alex took her place at the head of the table while Kendra and Ray flanked either side of her, Ray's smile never wavering as he eagerly handed her the presents.

"The smaller one is from me," Kendra began, gesturing to the packages, "I, uh, I hope you like it."

Alex nodded, "I'm sure I will." She smiled at the other woman, feeling something other than contempt stirring in her stomach. She reached for the smaller package, gently slipping her fingers through the tape so she wouldn't rip the paper bag.

A tiny box fell into her lap, the silvery sheen glowing in the daylight. She cracked it open, eyes meeting a circular pendant, the letter A carefully engraved into the necklace.

"Oh wow," Alex gulped, in awe of the gift Kendra had gotten her, "This is beautiful Kendra, thank you."

She lifted the pendant from the box, sunlight illuminating every angle.

"If you turn it over," Kendra continued hesitantly, "You, uh, you'll see that I had it...well you'll see."

Alex nodded, flipping the pendant over to catch the glittering outline of Greece, and for a moment she felt pressure build behind her eyes.

She missed Themyscira.

She missed the endless horse races and training sessions with her mother.

She missed the infinite sea that stretched for miles.

The cliffs she would dive off when she was feeling cooped up.

She didn't even realize she was crying until the taste of saltwater passed her lips.

She missed home.

"I'm sorry," She spoke, her voice tight, trying to keep her responses short. "This is wonderful Kendra, thank you." Alex pressed herself upward, moving around to give the woman a tight hug before wiping the remaining tears from her eyes. Kendra stroked her arm in comfort and Ray gave her a sympathetic smile.

Gently placing the necklace back into its box, Alex forced a short breath through her nostrils, calming herself down as she grabbed the next present with shaking hands.

"This one's mine," Ray exclaimed, his demeanor like an excited puppy, eagerly leaning over the table to watch her open his gift,

She chuckled at the sight and slipped her fingers underneath the tape, her nails were longer and broke through the folds easily. She slipped the present out, a bright white box landing on the table with a heavy thud.

"A box?" She laughed at her own joke, "You shouldn't have."

Ray chuckled along with her.

Alex continued to search the white package for the best place to open it, her nail breaking through the tape and she lifted the lid.

Her hands wiped themselves over the matte cover, feeling the weight in her arms as she opened the book, pieces of archaic vases and romantic portraits staring up at her, begging her to dissect every bit of them. To interpret them in new ways and share those with others.

This birthday, she decided, was the best birthday she had had in a long time.

She gulped down the tightness in her throat, her heart thumping against her chest as she looked over the gift Ray had given her. It was perfect. Everything about this was perfect.

"Thank you," Was all she could choke out, carefully placing the book back in its packaging as she moved to give the taller inventor a hug, relishing in the feeling of his arms around her, the act alone calming her down from the agitated state she had been in before.

The hug lasted longer than either of them expected, and when they pulled away, Alex's stomach sank. She felt colder, somehow. Like the air conditioning had been turned up by a thousand.

"This has been amazing," She looked between the couple, "I'm serious guys, thank you so much."

"Anything for our favorite demigoddess." Ray responded. And Alex chuckled, drawing her attention back to the book. "Besides, how often do you turn 97?" He joked, easing the tension that had been building.

Her chuckle turned into a laugh, echoing through the kitchen as Kendra stood up to join them.

"Cake?" She asked, gesturing to the homemade treat in the middle of the table.

Ray and Alex looked at each other before meeting Kendra's gaze, "Hell yes," Alex responded, the smile on her face genuine, reaching her eyes, causing the corners of them to crinkle.

Kendra grabbed a kitchen knife, pulling the circular pastry closer to her, the white cream cheese frosting curling over on itself, the slightest bit of red peeking through.

The piece Kendra handed her was the size of her palm, a thin white line divided the two layers, a blue H, A, and P on the top of her slice, indicating that Kendra had in fact, given her the biggest piece.

Alex moved to the silverware tray, trading her fork for a spoon before sitting back down, confused by the stares Ray and Kendra were both giving her.

"What?" She asked, hoping she didn't have to get into this debate with her two friends.

Kendra, thankfully, said nothing and went back to eating her piece of cake. Ray, however, couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"I don't- you know what, I'm just not gonna say anything,"

Alex maneuvered her body so she was facing the scientist. She raised her brow as if challenging the man before her, "You got something to say about my eating choices Palmer?"

It felt good to tease someone else again.

It felt good to joke around with someone again.

Ray lifted both of his hands in surrender, swallowing his piece of cake before continuing with his argument, "I've just never seen someone use a spoon to eat cake before is all."

Alex rolled her eyes, "It's not that unusual," She spoke through a restrained smile, a giggle escaping her mouth at the sight of Ray's skeptical expression.

She'd never seen that look on his face before.

"All I'm saying is that there are certain ways of doing things," Ray continued, "And while I don't want to say yours is wrong…" He bobbed his head back and forth, clearly letting her know his stance on things.

Alex shook her head, unable to stop the smile from forming on her face and stuffed more cake in her mouth, relishing in the sweet taste that passed her lips.

"But it tastes just as good," She joked back, waving the spoon in front of him.

* * *

She leaned against the back of the couch, tearing off pieces of the pita bread bit by bit, the tzatziki sauce dripping onto her thumb, where she eventually licked it up. The window was open, the soft summer wind blowing her hair in front of her face.

The view was perfectly positioned, she could see right above the clock tower in the center of downtown. Where they would eventually light up the fireworks she used to mark the end of her birthday with.

It was almost midnight.

They would be going off soon. She stuffed the rest of her gyro in her mouth, reaching for her napkin to clean off her hands.

She was getting ready to dig into her cupcake from Sal's when a voice stopped her in her tracks.

"You up to watch the fireworks too?" Ray asked, stuffing his hands in his pajama pant pockets as he meandered over to the couch. Alex shrugged.

"They're my favorite part of the holiday," She admitted, staring up into the inky sky, "It's not a birthday without fireworks."

The weight of the couch shifted as Ray joined her, the familiar scent of sandalwood and vanilla clogging her nose as he moved closer to her.

He caught sight of the napkin on the coffee table and the crumbs that accompanied it. Ray's face curled into a faux expression of betrayal, "Did you make gyros? Without me?"

A soft laugh slipped past Alex's lips, "It was my birthday," she shrugged, like that was enough of a justification, "And I was really hungry."

Ray rolled his eyes, but she caught the smile hanging on his lips, clearly letting her know that it didn't bother him.

"But…" She began, reaching in the box and pulling out the red velvet cupcake, "If you're that broken up about it, I guess we can share this."

Ray's expression immediately shifted to a more serious one, and she could hear the protest before he opened his mouth, "Oh no, I was joking before-"

"I know," Alex cut him off, offering the cupcake his way, "I still wanna share it with you."

Her chest bubbled at her words and she gulped down her nerves.

Ray hesitated, staring at the woman before him before standing up, causing Alex's stomach to drop.

Did she go too far? Pressure him into doing something he didn't want to?

Oh fuck. She messed up again, didn't she?

She failed, didn't she? And now she was going to spend her birthday alone again. Just like she had been expecting this whole time.

"You at least deserve one wish," Ray explained, coming back from the kitchen with a knife in one hand and a candle in the other. He plucked the cupcake from her hand and placed it on the counter, sticking the candle directly in the middle of it and lighting it with a match he stole from the matchbox in the kitchen.

"There you go," He gestured toward the convenience store cupcake, like it was a gourmet pastry ready to be judged, "Make a wish."

Alex checked her watch, just a few more seconds before the fireworks were set to go off. She really didn't wanna miss the opening ones because of a wish.

But the idea was endearing. It called to her.

And Ray really wanted her to.

Once she saw that dopey look on his face, she knew she couldn't say no. Taking a deep breath, she scooted closer to the coffee table, closing her eyes and sending her wish up to the stars.

_Bring me home. Bring me back to the Waverider. Please._

Her breath collided with the flame, sending it dissipating into the air just as crackling was heard behind her, explosions filling the sky as she watched the colors spread out before her. Her laugh flew through the window, conjoined with the sounds of the fireworks painting a picture in the sky.

Beside her, Ray whispered, "Happy Birthday, Alex."


	14. Another Love

"Alex!" She heard Ray's voice call from outside her door. She sighed before dropping the book she was reading in annoyance. Ray had a bad habit of seeking her out when he needed help with something.

He opened the wooden door, a couple of bills in his hand, "Coffee time, I'll buy."

Alex reluctantly rolled her eyes and slid her shoes on, pulling her hair up in a ponytail to avoid getting too overheated in the August sun.

"Is there a reason for this spontaneous endeavor?" She asked, rushing down the stairs toward the sidewalk. He called down to her, "I needed a break from planning for the first day of school tomorrow," Ray gave an exasperated sigh as he locked the door behind him, quickly joining her on the sidewalk, "Those kids are going to be the death of me."

"They're college students Ray," She stated, "Not demons."

"Same difference at this point," He muttered under his breath.

She let out a soft chuckle and they continued their usual path toward the park with the coffee stand. She waited until they were a good while down the path before she popped the big question.

"What did you need to talk about?" She asked, arching an eyebrow at the man beside her.

Ray scoffed, a guilty expression written all across his face, "I need a reason to get coffee with you now?" He said it like it was some unbelievable thought. Like the mini therapy sessions weren't the only reason these walks existed.

Alex took a sip from her coffee, knowing if she let the silence hang for a little while longer, he would eventually crack. He scoffed some more before finally giving in.

"It's Kendra," He confessed sheepishly, "I just-She's become kind of a recluse and I don't know what I can do to help."

Alex nodded, trying to stop her stomach from growling at the thought of helping the two stick together.

"How bad is it?"

Ray bobbed his head back and forth, weighing the events in his brain, "She's staying in her room all day, called in sick to work twice, and barely eats anymore." He let out a deep sigh, shoulders slumping, "I just...dont' know what to do."

Alex stared at the coffee cup in her hand and she wondered if she was strong enough to give this up.

If she was selfless enough to give it up.

"Do this," She gestured to the park, ignoring the constriction in her chest as she said it, "The walks in the park, sharing a coffee…" She trailed off, clearing her throat before continuing her thought, "Small stuff like that, just to get her out of the apartment."

The lump in her throat grew bigger and she picked at the cardboard warmer surrounding her cup, trying not to think about what Kendra and Ray did when she wasn't around.

"That's...actually not a bad idea," He smiled, a soft laugh escaping his mouth, "Thanks,"

She returned his gratitude with a tight smile, the two continuing their walk in silence until Ray finally spoke up again.

"How are you doing?"

Alex slowly nodded her head, trying to find the right words to explain her current state. "I'm…doing better." She settled on, hoping it was vague enough for Ray to stop asking questions, "Missing Sara really."

Ray nodded, bringing his hand around her shoulder to pull her into his side. The embrace filled her stomach with the fizzing she usually got when she was around him, and she could feel the tension in her back disappearing.

"I miss her too," Ray admitted, pulling out of the hug. He seemed to get lost in thought before stopping in his tracks, "Hey, I uh, I have a bunch of syllabi I need to look over before tomorrow," He began, his throat moving up and down as he gulped, "You wanna help me look them over?"

The chuckle slid past her lips before she could stop it. Only Ray Palmer could make the most boring task sound somewhat interesting. "Sure," Alex smiled, her teeth peeking through, "Yeah, I'd love to"

Ray responded with a wide smile and they continued their walk, both feeling marginally better than they had before.

* * *

"Alright," Alex called from the kitchen, "I'm gonna pour myself a glass of wine and then we can tackle these syllabuses, syllabi?" She shrugged, "Doesn't matter."

Ray peered over the couch to meet Alex's eyes, "Can you pour me one too? I have a feeling I may need it before this is over."

She nodded, reaching to grab an extra glass, warmth expanding in her chest at the thought of spending some more time with Ray.

Friends, she reminded herself. That's all we are. But she's happy with that.

She'll take a friend right about now.

"We only have white!" She called, uncorking the bottle and pouring the golden liquid into the wide glasses. Ray hadn't responded. She hoped that meant he was okay with it.

"Alright, let's get started," She wandered over to the couch, setting the wine glasses down and picking up one of the thirty pieces of paper.

Ray shook his head, immediately going for the alcohol, "It's so boring," A pleasant hum left his lips and he stared at the liquid in the glass in his hands, "This is really good, where'd you get it?"

Alex shrugged, "Sal told me it had peach in it so I bought it."

Ray made a face and took another sip.

Alex went back to examining the paper in front of her.

The syllabus wasn't that bad. He was right, it was a bit boring, but his students wouldn't care.

She would be lying if she said the idea of reading all thirty in one night didn't want to make her fall asleep.

She took another sip from her glass, "Do you really need these?" She waved the paper around, hoping the college he taught at was a bit more progressive than others in the 50s.

Ray nodded his head, rolling his eyes as he took another drink, this one bigger than the last one. "The dean told me I at least need one page, and that includes the legal stuff."

"So just include the legal stuff," She shrugged, leaning back against the couch, tossing the paper carelessly back onto the coffee table, "Maybe the schedule if they need it, but you don't need a whole lot."

Ray seemed to consider her words before rubbing his hands through his hair, his leg bouncing up and down from the stress he was feeling. "I just want them to like me you know?" He confessed, "Not just the students but the other faculty, this could be a big deal for me."

Alex scoffed inwardly, "Why? It's a temporary job," She downed the rest of her drink, "Rip and the others will come back eventually."

Ray didn't respond, his leg still jiggling.

Alex leaned forward, her gut twisting at the realization she had just made. "Unless...you don't think they're coming back?"

"It's been nine months Alex," he finally said, refusing to look at her, "If they were going to come back, they would've."

She stood up in protest, laughing out loud at his lack of hope. He was Ray Palmer, he could make a hurricane look optimistic and now he was just giving up?

"I- I can't believe this!" She burst, "First Sara, then Kendra, and now you? I mean…am I the only one who has any faith here anymore?"

Silence hung over the two of them and Alex scoffed, pacing back and forth. She told herself to breathe in and out. It was the only way she could calm herself down.

She couldn't believe this.

"You re-built the time beacon," She spoke aloud, more to herself than Ray.

"And now it's sitting in the storage closet, collecting dust." He responded, finishing his drink, "I don't like it any more than you do, but we have to start thinking about our future here." Ray urged her to listen to him, his tone pleading, "It's the only feasible one we have right now."

Alex shook her head, sticking her tongue against her cheek. She couldn't think about that.

She wouldn't think like that.

The Legends had given her a purpose again. They had given her hope again.

They would come back for them, she was sure of it.

Swallowing her doubts, she forced herself to take a deep breath, joining Ray on the couch again.

"You misspelled a word," She spoke callously, looking over the paper again.

* * *

They hadn't even realized they had fallen asleep until they heard the sound of the door slamming. The loud noise waking both of them up.

Alex was the first one to realize that she was practically pressed against Ray's chest, his arm wrapped around her shoulder.

She turned her attention to the door, where the sound of dropping groceries could be heard crashing against the wooden floor.

"Hey guys," Kendra chuckled mirthlessly, her mouth open in shock, "What, uh, what did I miss?"

Her tone was flat, emotionless. Alex stood up immediately.

"Kendra..."

Ray stared between the two women, oblivious to the tension that was building between them.

"I was tired," He tried to explain, finally understanding the situation, "Uh, Alex was helping me with my syllabi, and we just-"

"-fell asleep together" Kendra finished for him, scoffing at the excuse. Alex moved forward, the other woman taking a step back. "I uh, I think I need some air,"

She left the room as quickly as she entered it and Alex moved to follow her.

"Kendra!" Alex called, running down the stairs of the apartment to catch up with the furious woman. "Kendra wait! It wasn't what it looked like-"  
The demigoddess whirled around, eyes blazing, "You think I don't know that?" She asked, her voice shaking, "I know Ray would never cheat. I know you would never act on your feelings-"

"I don't have feelings-"

Alex silenced her protest when she saw Kendra's knowing expression. Guess she wasn't a discreet as she thought.

"I know how you feel about him Alex," Kendra crossed her arms, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "It's pretty obvious."

Alex pressed forward, stepping down the final stair onto the sidewalk, "That doesn't change the fact that he's your boyfriend." She began, swallowing the lump in her throat, "Even if I wanted to, I would never act on my feelings."

"I know," Kendra sighed, biting her cheek as she crouched down to sit on the staircase. The woman placed her head in her hands, curls spilling over her fingers. When she met Alex's gaze again, Kendra was crying.

Alex stumbled back in confusion.

"I wanted you to Alex," Kendra admitted, voice cracking, "I wanted you and Ray to be having some kind of secret affair because…" She trailed off and Alex crouched down beside her, brows creased together, trying to understand what her friend was going on about.

Kendra faced her, exhaling sharply, "...because I wanted a reason to leave Ray."

Well, she wasn't expecting that.

"What?" The word slipped past Alex's lips before she could stop it. She shook her head back and forth, trying to figure out what the hell she had missed. "Why?"

Kendra played with her hands, ignoring the Amazon's stare, "You know how I said I don't remember anything?"

Alex nodded. It was a point of most of their arguments.

"I lied," Kendra admitted, regret flashing across her face, "I've been getting...flashes of my old lifetimes. Of me and Carter." She moved her gaze from the sidewalk to the cement, a slight smile tugging on her lips, "We were happy together." She chuckled at the memory, "I don't think I've ever been that happy in my life."

"And you feel like you're betraying him," Alex finished for her, "That's why you've been so secluded lately."

Kendra nodded, finally meeting Alex's sympathetic stare. Alex bit the inside of her cheek.

"I love Ray, I do." Kendra continued, "But…"

Alex knew what the issue was. "You love Carter more."

The other woman hung her head in her lap, Alex gently stroking her spine.

"Why haven't you told Ray?" Alex finally asked, her gut twisting as she said that, "I'm sure he'd understand. Better than anyone I think."

Kendra faced her again, "You can't tell him," Her tone turned serious, hands grasping Alex's, "Please, this is the happiest he's been in months," She justified, "I can't take that away from him."

Alex's mouth flapped up and down. How could she ask her that? She just confessed to leading Ray on, admitted she wanted to end the relationship, and that she even hoped he was cheating on her. And she just expected Alex to keep all of that a secret?

"Kendra, I-"

"Please," Kendra's hands squeezed her own, fingernails digging into Alex's palms in desperation.

She watched the tears parade down the other woman's face and suddenly she imagined Ray in front of her, breaking down because of the way Kendra felt. Because she had told him the truth.

Kendra was right.

This would break him.

"Fine," Alex sighed, pulling her hands from Kendra's and standing up, "I won't tell him, but you should."

Her boots pounded against the pavement, shaking the staircase with every step she took, somehow feeling like she had made the wrong decision.


	15. Goodbye Love

Ray's face peeked around the corner of her door, his teeth widening into a smile as he pleaded, "Coffee?"

Alex sighed and finished folding the last of her laundry, slipping on her shoes and jacket for their weekly walks. Nowadays when Ray wanted a walk in the park, it usually meant he had something he needed to get off his chest. She wondered what had got him so excited this time. They stopped by Sal's for a quick hello before heading to the tiny coffee shop that had gotten used to seeing them together. The elderly woman even had their orders ready.

Alex was paying her when she finally spoke to them for the first time that year.

"You two are quite charming you know," She smiled, the wrinkles on her face creating a road map of untold stories, "Reminds me of my husband and I when we were your age."

Alex scoffed, trying to bury the way her heart jumped at the woman's words.

"You're too kind," The Amazon responded, "But Ray and I aren't a couple," She shot a look at the tall man outside, eagerly bouncing on the balls of his feet, "Just very good friends," She spoke wistfully, not even catching how her chest constricted as those words left her mouth.

The elderly woman smirked, her crinkled lips twisting upward. "I think you may need to tell him that."

A chuckle escaped Alex's lips as she faced Ray's excited expression, gesturing for her to start their walk. "I don't think he's the one that needs the reminder," She whispered to herself, grabbing the paper cup and thanking the woman on her way out.

"What was that all about?" Ray asked, his never-ending curiosity one of the many things that was endearing about him.

Alex shrugged, "She wanted to thank us for being such valued customers," Another easy lie. Except this one sat in her gut, swishing with each stride she took, churning until it flip-flopped.

She hated it.

The cool October air flew through her pink jacket, sending the hairs on the back of her neck spiking up, and she took a sip from her cup to keep herself from freezing entirely. The park was almost entirely bare, no one else in sight except for a lone runner passing them by.

Even the trees had lost all of their leaves.

It was almost Halloween.

Two more months and they would have lived in the fifties for an entire year.

Rip had abandoned them for an entire year.

Sara had been right. They weren't coming back for them.

"You okay?" Ray's voice cut through her thoughts, bringing her back to Earth.

Alex pulled her coat closer to her, "Huh? Oh yeah," she assured him, "Just thinking."

Ray nodded, letting the silence build between them. They both knew one of them would say something eventually.

"We've almost been here a year," Alex finally spoke aloud, the revelation finally turning into reality, "A whole year without the team."

Ray nodded sheepishly. "That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about." He stopped in the middle of the cement sidewalk, facing her with one hand in his pocket. "We have to start living our own lives," He began, biting his lip, "At some point, we have to start accepting that our lives with the Legends are over."

"Ray-"

"Let me finish this," He cut her off, ignoring the fearful look in her eyes, "We have to start moving on, whether that's in Hub City or...someplace else." He pulled a tiny box from his pocket, and Alex gulped down the nerves that had traveled from her stomach into her throat. Heart pounding.

This wasn't happening.

This couldn't be happening.

It had only been a year.

"I wanted your opinion on this," He flicked it open, revealing the bright diamond in the center of the white cushion, "I'm thinking of, uh, well giving it to Kendra over Christmas."

Alex's shoulders deflated, her stomach twisting into something sinister, something akin to contempt. Everything that had been building in her chest disappeared, replaced by an emptiness she hadn't felt in years.

"Kendra," She spoke aloud, as if remembering that the other woman existed, "Right, Of course," Alex kept walking. She suddenly wished she had something stronger than coffee to finish this conversation.

Ray was going to propose to Kendra.

Of course, he was.

They'd been dating for almost a year.

She didn't know how she'd forgotten it. Somehow amidst the late-night conversations and grocery runs and comforting gestures, she's forgotten that Kendra was his girlfriend.

And that she, like she told the elderly woman who ran the shop, was just a friend.

Always a friend. She bit her cheek, breathing growing shallow at the thought.

Here she was, fooling herself again. Telling herself that she mattered to someone, when really no one cared about her at all.

Because as soon as Ray proposed he would forget all about her. Both of them would.

It would be a victory Kendra would hold over her until death.

Ray didn't even know how Kendra felt. Her own doubts about their relationship. The demigoddess would turn him down. Alex knew it. She felt it in her gut.

If Ray proposed, Kendra would refuse.

If Ray proposed, he would get his heart broken.

And Alex refused to let that happen.

"Alex?" Ray's voice finally pierced her thoughts, and she forced herself to exhale, a cloud of breath evaporating before her eyes. She turned to face the inventor, an expectant look on his face, "Well, what do you think?"

Alex flapped her mouth open and closed, trying to come up with a response. But everything she came up with was negative. Selfish. Unsupportive.

"I think you should take it back," The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them, and when she caught the confused look on Ray's face, she immediately wanted to take them back.

He shook his head and stared at the ring again, "Oh, um…" For a moment he was actually speechless, and Alex could feel her throat clog up in guilt. "Does it-Is it not big enough? Cause I can't really afford anything fancy on a teacher's salary"

There he went again. Diffusing the tension with a joke and a laugh. Alex brought her free hand to her arm, trying to rub the nerves away.

She stuck her tongue in her cheek, knowing there was only one way to resolve this. The words were out there now. Might as well tell him the whole story.

"I mean for good," Alex confessed, a weight lifting off her chest as she said the words, "I don't-I don't think you should marry Kendra."

Ray stopped in his tracks, expression dropping into a frown, as if he didn't hear her correctly. "What?"

Alex flapped her lips before biting her cheek, "I said-"

"I heard what you said," Ray cut her off, an uncharacteristically cold tone in his voice, "Why?"

_Because she doesn't love you. Not in the way I do._

_Because it's just gonna leave you broken again._

_Because I care too much about you._

But she didn't say any of those things, instead, she went silent, digging her toe into the ground, trying to figure out the fastest way to disappear.

Ray's breathing grew faster, unable to form any words at the new revelation. "If I had known you felt this way about me and Kendra's relationship-"

"It's not about the relationship," Alex cut him off, her stomach leaping into her throat at her words, shoulders tensing as she tried to find the right way to express what she was feeling. "I just, I think you're making a mistake."

"A mistake?"

Alex shrugged, "Look, you're an optimistic guy Ray," She began, trying to form her thoughts into a cohesive sentence, "You want to believe that there's a future for you and Kendra, but there isn't."

Ray crossed his arms, scoffing at her answer, "What? You can see the future now?"

"I can't tell you how I know," Alex continued, ignoring the hurtful jab, "But if you propose to Kendra, it won't end up the way you expect."

Ray bit his lip, "And you just expect me to believe that?" He pressed closer, "Like your word is enough to sway me from what I've been thinking about for the past three months."

"That's what I'm talking about!" She exclaimed, "You've only known you want to marry her for three months! You've only known her for a year and you're convinced she's the person you're meant to spend the rest of your life with!"

Ray huffed at her words, "That's rich coming from the woman who pushes everyone away!" His bubble burst as well, "You spend your whole life searching for a family, trying to form connections, but the minute you do, you run away from it."

The words stung, a sharp pain in her chest as she felt a prickling in her nose. She forced herself to look away from Ray, swallowing the tears back down her ducts and facing him with a more determined gaze.

"You wanna play that game?" She threatened, "You've been projecting on Kendra ever since she showed interest in you."

Ray shut his mouth at her words, his adam's apple moving up and down as she continued.

"You want a happy family just as much as I do Ray," Alex's voice was thick with emotion, trying to hold the tears back as she let her anger take over, "But you want it with Anna, so you project her onto Kendra, not seeing her for who she truly is,"

Ray shook his head, water building up in the corner of his eyes, "You're wrong-"

"Am I?" Alex asked, "You haven't once asked what Kendra wants to do with her future, you haven't even stopped to ask yourself if this is the life she wants!" Her pulse began to race, all of her anger that she had built up over the past year spilling out like vomit onto the pavement, "You want her to be Anna so badly. But she's not. She's never gonna be her, Ray" Alex finished, the pressure behind her eyes close to cracking, "Kendra is not Anna."

Silence hung over the two of them.

And Alex finally understood the repercussions of her argument.

She had not only dragged his relationship through the mud, but she'd gotten Anna involved.

She'd never felt so guilty in her life.

She wanted to take it all back. But some sick twisted part of her insisted it was all true. And the fact that she agreed with it scared her.

Ray gulped down the lump in his throat, his dark eyes staring into her own, red surrounding his irises as he struck the killing blow,

"Yeah, well neither are you."

The dam burst, and saltwater burned against her lips. She stumbled back at the answer, unable to form any words in response.

Her mouth dropped open, body stiffening at his remark. Her body went numb. She couldn't feel anything.

"I never said I was."

Her voice was barely a whisper, and she blinked once. Twice. Turning on her heel, she floated down the sidewalk. The world melted away as she tried to reconcile the last few minutes with what she knew about the man she had come to rely on this past year.

The sharp pain never left her chest, breath hitching as she moved through the streets, covering her mouth with her hand as she walked back to the apartment.

She wasn't wanted here anymore.

She couldn't stay here anymore.

* * *

Her belongings were almost mockingly easy to pack. She had little to nothing, just the clothes Gideon had supplied them with and the presents Ray and Kendra had given her. She brought her hand to the necklace around her neck, thumb tracing the outline of Greece as she stared at the book of art.

It wasn't worth it. She decided. Looking at it will only remind her of him, and that's the last thing she needed. She slammed her suitcase shut, zipping it up as she moved to the living room. She released her grip on it when she caught sight of Ray by the door, his cheeks wet with tears.

"What do you want Ray?"

"Please don't go," He pleaded, voice cracking, and for a moment Alex wanted to stay. To believe that things would be different. That he'd listen to her.

But she had messed up too badly. She had ruined her last chance at a family. She couldn't stay.

"I messed up," Ray's forehead knit itself together, "Alex, I'm so sorry, I never should have said those things-"  
"I'm gonna miss my train" She cut him off, trying not to look at him.

Ray took a step forward, "Please, let me say this."

Alex crossed her arms, clenching her jaw as she nodded, giving him a second chance. It was more than he deserved.

Ray straightened up, clearing his throat before launching into his apology, "Our entire time here, we've had ups and downs," He began, trying to appeal to her more nostalgic side, "But through it all, I had you, even at my darkest moments. There you were, helping me deal with my problems, checking up on me." He gulped, "making sure I was okay."

The pressure behind her eyes felt ready to burst, chest constricting at his words.

"You are…" Ray hesitated, his own gaze growing watery again as he looked at her, "You are my one constant here."

Alex scoffed slightly, finally meeting his eyes, shaking her head, "I'm not your personal therapist Ray," She retorted, anger rising up through her throat, spilling out of her mouth, "and you made it clear that I am not important to you in any way."

"I know, I'm sorry," Ray backtracked, squeezing his eyes tight in thought, "I screwed up. I just- Stay. Please."

A moment passed between them. Silence deafening.

"I can't," She choked out, echoing Sara's words all those months ago.

Ray pressed forward, grasping her hands in his, the touch sending pleasant shivers down her back. "Please, Alex, I- I need a friend here."

Alex smiled mirthlessly, biting her lip in frustration, her nose prickling as tears marched down her face. "And what about what I need?!," This was it. Her pulse raced, telling her that this was the perfect time to tell him. This was the moment she had been waiting for. But her head disagreed. She shook it back and forth, "I'm tired Ray," She confessed, "I'm tired of being an afterthought in your life-"

"You're not," He tried to assure her, moving closer. She stepped back.

"I am," She protested, the knot in her stomach growing tighter, "and I'm sick of it" Her tone was flat, emotionless, everything she had ever felt dissipating into nothing, her tears drying in tracks on her face. "You were right," Her voice was hoarse, the sharp pain in her chest growing sharper as she watched Ray's face fall. "We need to start living our own lives," The pain was dulling into a lump in her chest, remaining there even after she turned away to grab her suitcase, Ray's hand slowly falling from hers.

"Alex-"

She pushed past him, opening the door to leave. With a second of hesitation, she turned back toward him, a soft smile on her lips, "If you ever change your mind…" She began, taking a deep breath, "I'll be in Boston." a lump formed in the back of her throat, heart pounding against her chest, begging her to stay with them. But she knew better. "Goodbye Ray."

She stepped into the windy air, shutting the door behind her.

Alex leaned against the metal entryway and lowered her head into her hands, her body shaking from the sobs.


	16. Left Behind Pt 2

The weather seemed to reflect Ray's mood more and more. Bright sunbeams warmed his back through his tweed jacket. He was finally starting to feel like he was fitting in. Like he was making a difference in these kid's lives. He was still adjunct, but he was certain in a few more years he'd be moved up to a permanent faculty member in the physics department.

God knows they need it.

His chest still tugged when he thought of his time with the Legends. It was the best he had felt in years, he was doing what he originally set out to do. He was saving the world with good people by his side.

He was making a difference.

But these past two years had made it clear that they weren't coming back, and as he held the box in his hand, a slight wind in his hair, he knew his time beacon wouldn't work. Which was why he was gifting it to Kendra.

She supported him through everything, stuck by him and loved him when no one else would. His heart tightened as an image of Alex passed through his brain but he shook it away, plastering a smile on his face as he met Kendra's gaze.

"Happy second anniversary." His smile grew wider as he handed her the white and red dotted box.

"Happy anniversary." Kendra's gaze shifted downward as she accepted the present, "I thought we said no gifts."

Ray shrugged, excitement building in his stomach at the thought of her reaction, "I know. Just open it."

Kendra's eyes were coy, peeking through her dark lashes as she lifted the lid off the box, her expression dropping into an unreadable one, "Your time beacon?" Surprise was certainly present, but Ray couldn't put his finger on the rest of her wide array of emotions.

Still, he told himself it was a good thing, "I thought we could destroy it together." He explained, grabbing the hammer from his bag.

She shook her head, her hesitation reminding him of Alex's way back when, "You don't have to do that." She comforted, readying her argument to save it.

Ray knew she wouldn't be happy until he destroyed it. "I want to." He cut her off, readying the speech he had spent hours preparing in his head for this exact moment. The speech he wanted to give at Christmas before his conversation with Alex months before made him hesitate. "You know, I never thought that I could build a life with anybody but Anna," He began, still shuddering from his last conversation about the dead woman, "But, um, that's exactly what we've done, in the most unlikely time and place imaginable." Ray took another deep breath in, "And I know it may sound strange, but I'm glad that we were stranded here."

He noticed the same look of hesitation cross Kendra's face again.

"Me too." She finally responded.

The tension left Ray's shoulders and he knew this was the right decision. He reached into his bag, fingers tracing the outline of the ring he'd been hoarding for a year, "I have one more surprise for you."

Her tone was chastising, almost disappointed for breaking their anniversary rules, "Ray-"

Their conversation was cut off by a beeping.

Ray froze. He'd spent the past two years trying to create that sound. Trying to reach out to the vehicle that would answer back.

And now...it was here.

The Legends were here.

But somehow their interruption of his proposal wasn't the worst part. Ray scoffed inwardly, realizing his mistake.

The worst part was that Alex had been right. That they were always coming back for them.

And he had given up so easily.

The wind picked up and the hissing of the door was heard as a familiar figure in a trench coat sauntered down the ramp.

"Sorry, we're late."

Ray was still in shock as they walked back into the bridge of the Waverider, "Two years." He finally spoke, unable to face the fact that he had been so wrong about them, "You left us stranded in 1958." It was a way of shifting the blame, of making himself feel better. It was the only thing he could do.

Rip finally addressed them again, "That was never my intention." He excused, turning around to face them.

The past two years played on a loop in his head. There was so much they could've avoided. "Can't we rev the ship back up, go back to 1958, and pick that us up?" He tried to appeal to the captain, knowing it was a lost cause.

"You know very well that we can't-"

"-Travel back to events we participated in without time folding in on itself." Ray finished for Rip, guilt eating away at his chest. He couldn't go back and undo what had already happened, even with a time machine. He couldn't stop Sara from leaving. He couldn't stop Alex from leaving.

That hit harder than he anticipated.

Stein's voice pulled him out of his thoughts, "Raymond." He sais his name with a hint of pride, enveloping the inventor in a hug.

"Good to see you," Ray whispered, pulling out of the hug to move into the bridge, his thoughts wandering to the last time he was here. He was still friends with Sara, he was still close to…

He swallowed his thoughts of her, the wound somehow re-opening as his feet dragged against the metal floor. Her words rang in his head.

I never said I was.

He forced himself to think of something else, anything else. His apartment back Hub City, His job, his students. He was a teacher now.

"It's just I have 50 midterms to grade next week," He said to himself more than anyone else. They were only halfway through the semester. He was supposed to write recommendation letters for grad schools for her advisees, "by hand," He continued, "and I've just come to terms with living in the technological dark ages." He rambled, trying to find an excuse to go back. To head back to his simple life with Kendra, where he didn't have to face the truth. That he was useless otherwise. That he had no point on the team. Wasn't that why he had been left in the first place? "I have students who count on me. Kendra and I have friends and a life-"

Kendra was quick to cut him off, "Ray…"

He let out a sigh, trying to calm down his nerves. "Look, I'm sorry," Kendra turned toward the rest of the team, "This is all very intense. It's been two years for us. We thought you guys were dead."

The team seemed to thankfully understand this train of thought. Ray just wished he could agree with her. He wished that was the only thing that was bothering him. But he couldn't help but wonder. If he had listened to Alex all those months ago, would things be different? Would she be standing here with them instead of living across the country alone?

He was pulled out of his thoughts with a quick recap of the Team's exploits by Jax.

"Chronos attacked us." Jax moved to Kendra's side, "He sabotaged the ship and took Snart."

"We need to recover and Ms. Prince as well. Where is Sara?" Rip asked, expectantly looking at the couple, as if waiting for an answer. Ray and Kendra looked down in shame.

"Uh, no idea." Ray shrugged, his chest constricting, that was something that could've been avoided too, "People go their separate ways, lose track of each other," was all the explanation he could give. He didn't know where she was. He didn't know when he had gotten so bad at keeping up with people.

Rip let out a sigh, turning toward the computer, "Gideon, search the timeline for any reference of a Sara Lance, or a blonde vigilante, circa 1960."

"Right away, Captain."

Ray felt like a failure. He couldn't even help the team find his friends. Not even a day back and he was already back to being useless.

Rip turned back to them, "What about Alexandra? Please tell me you know where she is at least,"

Ray could hear the chiding tone in his voice and he knew this was his chance to redeem himself. He knew exactly where she was. The location had never left his brain.

"Boston" he spoke up the same time Kendra said, "I don't know."

Rip nodded at Ray's suggestion and commanded Gideon to search for Alex in 1960s Boston. Kendra turned toward him, shock written across her face, arms crossed. "You knew where she was this entire time?"

Ray nodded, oblivious to the angry tone in her voice.

She scoffed, "And you didn't think to tell me?"

"You never really asked about her," Ray tried to explain, unsure why he even kept her location secret all these months.

"That doesn't mean I didn't care," Kendra burst, shaking her head, brow creasing, "You don't think I would want to know that my friend was safe?"

Ray shrugged, his nerves bundling themselves up in his throat, squirming under the harsh gaze of the woman before him, "I-I didn't think you two were that close."

Kendra dropped her arms, scoffing and shaking her head at Ray, disappointment written across her face.

"Gideon!" Rip's voice rang out of the bridge, "Set a course for Boston Massachusetts, 1960"

* * *

**Boston, Massachusetts, 1960**

She double-checked her watch, staring down the empty subway car. She stood up, anticipating the harsh stop, stepping out of the doors and practically running up the stairs and down the sidewalk, ignoring the stabbing pain of her stilettoes every time her feet hit the ground.

Oh, he was going to kill her for being late to this meeting.

She ran toward the elevator, "Hold the door!" she called, hoping one of the other personal assistants was there.

But her luck ran out, of course, it did. That dick Frank let it close on her. So now she had to wait.

God, she hated working here sometimes.

The thirty seconds that passed felt like thirty minutes before she was able to squeeze into the next elevator cycle.

Her foot tapped involuntarily, hoping she still had her job at the end of this.

"There you are!" A husky voice called to her from behind his desk, "Where have you been?"

Alex always had to remind herself that it wasn't him. That even though they shared the same face and the same history, the man before her was not her father.

"Sorry Mr. Trevor," She apologized, reaching into her bag and pulling out the minutes from last week's meeting so he could look them over.

Steve Trevor of Earth-1 leaned back against his chair, a cigar in hand as he flipped through the folder. "These are irrelevant now," He dismissed, "They canceled on us."

"Again?" Alex asked, disbelief clouding her face, "That's the second time this month."  
Mr. Trevor nodded, "I know, something's fishy."

Silence stood between the two of them, Alex praying to be dismissed so she could go back to wasting time behind her desk, but before anyone could say anything, the glass door opened.

"Excuse me," a familiar shaky voice called from the entryway, "I'm afraid Miss Prince is needed downstairs urgently."

Alex could've cried of relief when she saw Martin. Steve dismissed her and she sent him a small thank you as she left with the Professor.

"You have no idea how happy I am to see you," She smiled as she pulled the old man in for a hug, "Is everyone else here?"

Martin nodded, "Everyone except Mr. Snart and Miss Lance,"

"What happened to them?"

"Mr. Snart was apprehended by Chronos during our trip through the timestream." Martin explained, pressing the elevator door button, "And we were hoping you knew where Miss Lance was."

Alex shifted her gaze to the floor, the ding of the elevator interrupting her response, walking outside to catch sight of the giant ship.

Her smile widened, a soft chuckle leaving her lips. She'd never thought she'd be so happy to see the ugly orange color of the timesphere ever again.

The hallways were exactly as she remembered. "Nice to have you back Miss Prince," Gideon's electronic voice rang over her.

"Nice to see you too Gideon," She responded back. Martin led her back to the bridge, the pathways not any less confusing.

He was right. Everyone was there. Rip, Jax, and…

She froze in her tracks. Ray and Kendra were there.

She hadn't seen them in a year. And well...

Alex swallowed her nerves and moved forward, focusing on Rip and Jax, embracing both of them before dealing with the problem at hand.

"I know where Sara is," She confessed, shock falling across the room, "There's only one place in the world she would go during this time period."

Ray and Kendra's stare was burning into her back and she forced herself to ignore them. Rip was clearly waiting for an answer.

"She's with the League of Assassins."

Rip nodded as if considering her suggestion, "Gideon, pull up the shadow record," He commanded, scrolling through the pieces of papyrus.

"Shadow Record?" Jax asked, confused by the whole ordeal. Alex moved in to explain.

"It's a list," She began, "A compendium of every League member since writing was invented," She leaned over the table, looking for Sara's name, ignorant to the surprised looks of her teammates.

Stein thankfully broke the silence, "Sara said that Ra's al Ghul had lived nearly a century before she met him."

"Thanks to the Lazarus Pit."

Alex tensed at the sound of Ray's voice, her pulse racing at his words, nails digging into her palms in order to keep her cool.

"It's basically a life-extending Jacuzzi," Ray continued, oblivious to the uncomfortable position of the woman next to him, "located in a place that's the opposite of life-extending."

"You should count yourself lucky, ," Rip congratulated the inventor, causing Alex to scoff under her breath, "Only a handful of outsiders have been inside the League's fortress and lived to tell the tale."

Anger bubbled in her stomach. One year. One whole year and he wasn't even trying to repair the damage that had been done.

She shook her head, trying to focus on the mission. That was all she could do.

Find Sara, deal with Chronos, and then figure out her social life later.

"You are correct, Captain." Gideon interrupted her thoughts, "There is a mention of a Ta-er al-Sahfer"

Alex leaned closer when the title was uttered, "That's Sara's League of Assassins name." She spoke with contained excitement. They were much closer to finding her. They would be reunited again soon.

Rip took a closer look, "According to the Shadow Record, she joined the League in 1958."

"Incredible" Stein exclaimed, awe etched onto his face, "Sara became a member of the secret organization that trained her to be an assassin 50 years prior to when she initially joined."

Alex chuckled inwardly. Stein could always see the bright side of things, she needed that more than ever.

Rip's tone turned serious, "Gideon, chart a course for Nanda Parbat."

Alex turned on her heel, moving straight past Ray and Kendra, only to be stopped halfway by Jax.

"Hey!" The younger kid called, stopping Alex in the hallway, "Is everything okay?"

Alex nodded, ignoring the constriction in her chest at her words. Of course, everything was not okay. Her best friends were kidnapped or had left her because she wasn't good enough.

But they had enough on their plate. Jax didn't need to carry her emotional weight.

"You know you can talk to me right?" Jax told her, "The professor and I, we share a psychic bond, but I don't need one to know that you ain't doing so hot."

Alex chuckled, her voice thick from unshed emotion, "Thanks Jax, I appreciate it."

The younger man nodded, tapping her shoulder before disappearing back onto the bridge, leaving her alone.

But not for long apparently.

"Alex!" Kendra called, stopping the Amazon in her tracks, embracing her in a hug, "I'm so happy you're okay,"

The other woman froze, Kendra pulling away before she could return the hug. Alex nodded, swallowing her pride, stomach growling as she prepared her next words.

"I suppose congratulations are in order," She spoke through gritted teeth. Kendra's brow creased, as if she didn't know what she was talking about.

"For you...and Ray," Alex clarified, and realization struck Kendra.

"Oh, right, thank you."

Silence hung over the both of them, the two women bouncing on the edge of their feet, unsure of what else to say.

"I should-"

"Yeah," Kendra replied, heading back toward the bridge. Alex nodded, her fingernails digging into her palms again as she moved toward her room.

* * *

They crept through the halls of Nanda Parbat, the hairs on Alex's neck standing up. Something wasn't right here. She drew her cloak over her lasso, keeping it hidden from any enemy eyes that may be watching. Even if she could fight her way out, she was only one woman

"Something's wrong." Stein echoed her concerns, Jax and him flanking her sides, "They should have been back by now."

"Rip will get through to her," Alex spoke up, trying to keep the team level headed, "He has to."

"Well, I think this counts as absolutely necessary," Ray spoke up from behind her, closing her eyes in irritation at the sound of his voice, a gesture that did not go unnoticed by Jax. "I've got my exo-suit shrunk down, and I can miniaturize and do some tiny sneaking." He tried to offer. Alex knew he was trying to be helpful, but she also knew that he hadn't used it in years.

"No offense Ray," She began, "But you're a bit out of practice, and I don't think miniature sneaking is our best course of action right now."

He scoffed, "Oh what, and sneaking around a dangerous fortress is?"

Alex halted her steps, turning around to face him for the first time in a year, "Rip told us to wait, provide cover, that's what we're doing." She explained, "We don't need to draw unwanted attention to ourselves."

"That's why I'd use the suit!" Ray continued, his voice rising, "No one will ever know I'm here."

Alex shook her head, "Except you haven't used it in two years and could end up accidentally revealing dwarf star energy forty years early."

Kendra moved beside her, "Alex is right,"

The Amazon turned toward the woman in surprise.

"Besides, we don't even know if the suit works," Kendra continued.

Jax sighed, "Is really now the time to be dealing with this?" He gestured to the three of them and they all turned simultaneously.

"Shut up" They all replied at the same time.

"Can we just keep it down, please?" Stein cut the trio off, clearly exasperated with the group. Not long after he said that, the hairs on her neck prickled back up again, and Alex drew her sword, league members surrounding them on all sides, bows aimed at the five of them.

She was ready to fight her way out when a familiar figure appeared from the shadows.

"Sara?" Alex whispered, disbelief written across her face. There was nothing warm about her friend, her bright blue eyes a shocking grey in the current lighting.

"Found her." Rip spoke in a defeated tone, shackles clanging together.

With a sigh, Alex lifted her arms up in surrender, two league members taking her sword and shield from her, Sara instructing the rest of them to keep Firestorm separated and stealing Ray's suit.

Handcuffs found themselves around her wrists, and she swallowed her nerves. This wasn't good. None of this was.

They were escorted into a semi-circular room with dim lighting, quickly chained to the wall in succession. She stood between Jax and Ray, trying to keep her focus on the woman before her.

"You shouldn't have come here." Sara directed the comment at her, and Alex swore she saw a hint of fear in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm starting to get that," Ray responded, and Alex rolled her eyes. She was starting to get tired of hearing him talk.

"I came here to find you," Alex confessed, and Sara's movement stalled for a moment.

"No need," The blonde turned her back on Alex, "I've found peace here."

Alex scoffed, trying not to let the tugging at her chest distract her from the mission at hand. Personal feelings be damned, the team needed Sara.

Her rebuff hurt, but Alex knew these people. If she showed even the slightest hint of emotion, nothing she said would be taken seriously. And she needed to be taken seriously.

"Peace with the League of Assassins?" Rip scoffed, thinking the same thing Alex was, "That must be the first time that sentence has ever been uttered." She could tell Sara's betrayal was hurting him too.

The assassin didn't turn around at their words, instead walking up the stairs, getting ready to leave them all behind. The way she was left behind.

"If this is retribution of some kind for stranding you in 1958-" Stein was cut off by Sara's harsh words. Clearly that still stung.

"It is the will of Ra's al Ghul." She snapped, jaw clenching, "Trespassers are to be executed."

The door closed behind her, two guards left in charge of it, her words hanging in the air. Alex let out a defeated sigh.

She had come all this way...and her friend wasn't her friend anymore.

"We just need a little more time to get through to her." Rip was convinced, and Alex scoffed. The eternal optimism was really starting to bug her now.

Thankfully Stein seemed to feel the same way, "Do Time Masters have a different understanding of the word 'executed'?"

Rip shook his head, preparing to launch into another one of his speeches about time travel, "It's called 'time drift" He began, "When one spends too long in an alien timeline, one loses ties with one's former self, former identity."

Alex nodded, trying to understand what he was talking about. That hadn't happened to her. All her memories were intact, she felt no loyalty to the Steve Trevor of this Earth. She felt no loyalty to anyone but the people she was chained up here with.

If time drift was a real thing, then why hadn't she been exposed to it?

"Oh, my God." Kendra thought aloud, as if struck by a sudden realization. "I didn't understand it before," She continued, her brow creasing, "but my powers, they went dormant."

Alex still didn't understand why it wasn't affecting her. Her powers were still intact, she was still able to use the lasso. She was still able to wield the Godkiller.

"What are you talking about?" Ray was next to ask, looking as confused as Alex felt.

"My wings," Kendra explained, "You must have noticed that I haven't been able to "hawk out" in almost two years."

Ray seemed to ponder this information, almost like he hadn't thought of it before.

"I just thought that you didn't want to." He finally responded, and Alex rolled her eyes, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because it was so hard for you to give up hope that the team would return." Kendra confessed, regret flashing over her face, "When you finally did, you started to be happy again, and I couldn't bear telling you that I wasn't."

"So why didn't I suffer from it?" Alex asked aloud, hoping to avoid another marital spat from the couple chained beside her. Rip was more than happy to answer that for her.

"Because of your lasso," He announced, trying to gesture to the weapon, "Your divine artifact makes it impossible to lie, therefore making it impossible for you to be someone you're not."

Realization suddenly fogged her brain, regret panging against her chest. "So if I had…"

"Don't" Ray's voice caught her by surprise, "You had every right to leave, don't blame yourself for what happened to me and Kendra,"

"I wasn't talking about you and Kendra," She snapped, unable to stop the malice coating her words, instead she turned to face Rip, "Call for a trial," She urged.

"I'm sorry what?" The man asked incredulously.

"You know these people, their traditions, " She explained, "Call for a trial."

She saw the realization enter his eyes and he called to the guard, demanding to speak to Ra's. Alex's lips twisted upward into a knowing smirk. They were going to make it out of here alive, and they were going to make it out of here with Sara by their side.

The guard led them back to the main room, the circular fighting area lit up with torches, Sara standing by Ra's side.

"Mr. Hunter." The League leader commanded all the attention in the room, clearly intimidating to everyone. But Alex knew people like him. His power was always on the edge of being taken.

She drew her attention to the two figures behind him, a tall girl dressed in fur robes, her braids accentuating how young she looked. The boy beside her was much younger, probably still in single digits, his cropped black hair reminiscent of the man standing before them.

Alex wasn't surprised to see that Ra's had brought his own children with him. Diana had done the same with her.

"Captain, as a point of fact." Rip corrected Ra's, trying not to seem intimidated by him.

Ra's chuckled at the Captain's attempt, "Right. Well, I do hope your request for an audience is not an attempt to justify your trespass here."

Alex watched the interaction with interest, both men trying to get the upper hand, two important women by their sides. This had been her idea, if it failed...

"Most certainly not." Rip iterated, facing the blonde woman by Ra's side, "But it would be remiss of me if I didn't use this opportunity to reiterate that Sara is very important to me," He then faced Alex, who was also staring at her friend, "to all of us."

"And as she is to me." Alex bristled at Ra's words. "And as you can all see, she has chosen to remain here."

_Because she doesn't know any better_. Alex wanted to say.

_Because she thinks she has no other choice_.

Rip swallowed, clearly not happy with the circumstances, "Yes, well, if that is her wish, we will indeed honor it."

Alex knew this was all for show. The trial by combat would save them. She was sure of it.

Ra's nodded, grateful for his surrender, "Well, thank you. But your deaths will make that concession irrelevant."

Alex tensed at the mention of her possible death. Even if she could fight her way out, the rest of them couldn't.

Rip leaned forward, a knowing look shared with Alex, "Well, according to my understanding of League Law, the whole death thing can be avoided," Ra's straightened up, his brow raising at his statement, "should we prevail at trial."

Alex smirked by Rip's side, knowing that if Rip demanded it, Ra's could not refuse.

"I demand a trial by combat."

Ra's smirk dropped at the sound of Rip's demand, pressing forward, "And how is a man such as you so well-versed in our traditions?"

Alex stared at the man, refusing to look at Sara, knowing if she did, all of this could fall apart. She would get too emotional, too focused on their previous encounter.

"Do we have an accord?" Rip said instead of answering his question.

Silence stood between the two men, tension waiting to be cut.

Ra's nodded, gesturing toward Sara, "May victory be yours."

This wasn't part of the plan. Rip was supposed to be fighting Ra's. Alex swallowed her nerves, she knew what she had to do.

Rip was just as confused, "I was under the impression that I would be fighting you."

"Then it would seem your understanding of our laws requires some refinement." Ra's chuckled, his smirk returning, "You see, I may choose any champion I wish, as may you."

"I volunteer," Alex stepped forward, staring at the blonde woman before her. They had a connection. Sara had to remember that at least.

"What?" She bristled at Ray's protest, "No, Alex are you insane-"

"Do we have an agreement?" Alex cut him off, eyes never leaving Ra's own.

Ra's nodded and turned to Rip, silently asking if he agreed. Rip nodded, "Miss Prince is the best of us, I would be a fool to choose anyone else."

Alex turned to her Captain, sending him a nod of thanks as she grasped the sword offered to her, lasso hanging by her side.

She circled the woman, twirling her sword to loosen her wrist, her grip never wavering. "I know you remember me," She bragged, "The woman you left."

Sara didn't say anything, but she drew her sword, both waiting for the bell to signify the start of the fight.

Alex widened her stance, prepping for battle, "You don't wanna kill me."

The gong sounded and Sara attacked. Alex maneuvered to the side, dodging the blow and bringing her sword up to meet hers in a symphony of metal. She broke through the woman's defenses, landing a forward kick in her gut, sending the assassin reeling.

"You are not a killer Sara Lance," Alex reminded her, hoping that this fight was working.

"You have no idea who I am," Sara screamed and attacked again, her sword swinging down in an arc, Alex blocking and parrying the blow, ducking out of the way to sweep her leg underneath Sara, trying to catch the woman off guard.

Sara jumped, narrowly avoiding the kick, the hilt of her sword colliding with Alex's face. She reeled from the blow before jumping forward, her sword angled at the assassin. The blonde rolled out of the way, growling as she moved to stand up again.

Alex smirked. She was making Sara angry.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of surprise in Ra's face. Clearly no one had ever done this well against her.

Alex moved to the left and then to the right, bringing her sword up in defense before ducking and sweeping her leg again, this time sending the assassin to the ground. Sara groaned and Alex stood victorious.

"Go ahead," Sara moaned, "Kill me."

She tossed her sword aside, disgusted with the entire idea of the league. "No, I'm not killing you." She confessed, "You are better than this, you are a warrior, the white canary." She paused one last time, "You are a legend."

Alex stepped aside, moving back toward her team, and she felt the wind whistle behind her, turning around, her cuffs absorbed the energy of the sword, blocking it once, twice, three times. Left with no other choice, her hands went for her lasso, flipping upward, over the horizontal blow. Her momentum propelled her over the assassin, heads barely touching as she flicked her arm out, the golden braid looping around Sara. Alex's boots slid against the dirt, regaining her footing as she tightened her grip on the rope, the glow of the instrument lighting up the room, finally forcing Sara to face the truth of who she is.

"Come on," Alex muttered under her breath, out of tricks if this didn't work. A second passed, feeling like a lifetime. She pumped as much mental energy into the rope as possible, hoping her emotional tether to the woman was enough to pull her out of this illusion.

Sara struggled against the burning lasso, falling to her knees as her scream rang through the room, shaking the foundation of Nanda Parbat.

And then it stopped.

The assassin opened her eyes, grey confusion replaced with a bright blue, a wide gaze meeting Alex's.

The other woman let out a sigh of relief. Before anyone could say anything else, the door flew off its hinges, a hulking armored figure shooting his way through the entire army Ra's had cultivated.

Sara turned to Ra's, Alex freeing her from the confines of the rope, "Free them." She spoke in Arabic, "It is the only way"

Ra's stayed silent, gesturing for his own personal guard to attack Chronos.

"You can't face him," Rip urged, "you can't defeat him!"

Ra's continued to ignore the man's pleas, watching his own men fall as Chronos tossed them aside like ragdolls.

Alex took the next step, switching to Arabic to ensure the leader knew how urgent this matter was. "You want the League to survive?" Ra's looked interested at her words, "Release us, we are the only ones who can defeat him."

Sara was the next one to face Chronos, but she was still tired from the previous fight. She managed to get a few hits on his armor, but when she was suddenly pushed aside, Ra's finally understood how serious the threat was.

"You brought him here." The man stated, breaking the chains of her friends, "It's only right you kill him."

The guard closest to Ra's handed Alex's weapons back to her, and she chuckled with relief at the feeling of her sword back in her hand. She readied her shield and pressed forward, dodging the blaster fire before landing a kick square in the chest, sending the bounty hunter reeling. Sara slid beside her, moving behind Chronos, her sword slicing behind his kneecap, Kendra flying onto his shoulders, performing a maneuver that sent Chronos flying.

The bounty hunter stood, trying to dodge the fireballs Jax and Stein were throwing at him. Ray appeared beside Alex's shoulder, distracting Chronos before enlarging.

Sara launched a kick at the hunter's back and Alex blocked another blast with her cuffs, swiping her foot underneath Chronos, giving Ray the opening he needed to blast the bounty hunter onto the floor, The rest of the legends gathering around him.

"You son of a bitch." Jax snarled, preparing a fireball before a familiar voice cut them off.

"Don't do it!" Leonard called from the door, sounding desperate as he clutched his arm, "Don't kill him."

Alex stared at her friend, wondering what the hell had changed to make him so adverse to killing the man who had been hunting them since day one.

"Sorry, don't kill Chronos?!" Rip asked incredulously, his gun still pointed at the floored bounty hunter.

The desperation never left Snart's face, "He's not Chronos," He explained, gesturing to Alex, "Show them."

Alex nodded, ripping the helmet off of the unconscious figure. The man stirring as the Legends stared at him, trying to process his identity.

The hunter drew himself up to his knees, a smirk written across his face.

It wasn't possible. It couldn't be possible.

Leonard had taken care of him. They weren't supposed to see him again.

Alex wasn't supposed to face her mistakes again.

Because if it was possible, that means that she had been wrong about Mick Rory since the beginning.

"My God."

Rip's words said exactly what she was thinking.

Rory chuckled, a twisted smirk on his face, "There is no god,"

All the anger Alex had been feeling for the past two years finally culminated in one final punch, sending Rory collapsing to the floor unconscious.

* * *

The bridge was empty save for the constant presence of Gideon. The metal stairs dug into her legs. She was so tired. All she wanted was one moment of peace, one moment where she didn't have to worry about tip-toeing around Ray and Kendra. One moment where she didn't have to worry about Sara's mental state. She was so tired of giving and giving.

A glimpse of movement passed by the corner of her eye, a head of blonde hair sitting next to her.

"I never thanked you," Sara began.

Alex shook her head, "You don't have to, you would've done the same." Her voice was flat, no emotion behind her words. Her shoulders slumped, blinking slowly.

"I'm sorry for leaving," Sara tackled next, "It was stupid of me, and I was acting out, and I should've- I should've stayed."

Alex refused to say anything. She was so tired of everything. Of holding grudges that should have died a long time ago. She was so tired of being angry. Instead she reached over, grasping Sara's hand in her own, letting her know that she was forgiven.


	17. Progeny

She stood in front of the glass, arms crossed, her lips turned down into a frown.

She had trusted Mick Rory. Believed in him.

And here he sat, a killer with a smirk across his face.

"You ever gonna say something Princess?" His rough voice cut through the tension, and Alex clenched her jaw at the nickname.

"Everyone else hated you," She stated, recalling the way he had been treated on the ship, Mick freezing at her words, anger brewing behind his eyes. "They expected you to be evil, to be something that I knew you were not." Alex grit her teeth together, never leaving her spot, "I trusted you Mick, when everyone else said you'd go left, I knew you'd go right."

Silence hung over the two of them, Rory leaning forward without an inch of regret in him.

"You were wrong," He responded, a smirk on his face, "I'm a killer, I always have been."

Alex shook her head, "No you're not," She wasn't sure why she was holding onto the hope that he could change, "Because I've met killers, and they may look like you, but you're better, I can feel it."

Mick laughed at her statement, "You holding out hope for me Princess?" He taunted, face suddenly dropping into a more serious expression, "you wouldn't be the first."

Gideon's voice came over the intercom, telling her that the team was back.

As she was getting ready to leave the room, she hesitated, turning to face Rory again. "Leonard's lucky to have you." She stated, ignoring the hurt panging from his earlier words, "I hope you know that."

The door hissed open and she followed the hallways down to the bridge, where Rip, Sara, and Leonard were waiting in the Captain's room.

"What's going on?" Alex breathed as she moved to sit on the other arm of the chair Leonard had claimed.

"We found Savage," Sara informed her.

Alex turned to Rip, knowing what their next move was, "That's great, what are we waiting for?"

"Slight problem girl scout," Leonard's drawl made her hesitate, and she turned toward Rip fro an explanation.

"He's a teacher." Sara jumped in instead.

"Tutor," Rip corrected, "it would seem, to young Per Degaton himself."

"I'm sorry, did you say young Per Degaton?" Alex asked, trying to process all the information sent her way.

Sara was the only one who answered her question, "He's fifteen right now,"

Alex nodded, "And you want us to kill a fifteen-year-old?"

Rip didn't say anything, changing the subject completely, "After the death of his father in five year's time, Per Degaton unleashes the Armageddon Virus," He explained, "which decimates the world's population, leaving it ripe for conquest."

"That doesn't change the fact that you want us to _kill a fifteen-year-old_." Alex snapped, not believing this.

She understood the reason why. It was strategic. But she was more upset about the fact that Rip had willingly held this information back. That he had lied through omission again.

And that was the worst part about this.

"Per Degaton primes the world for dictatorship, and then when the time is right Savage snatches that power away from him-" Rip's tone was urgent, trying to justify his decision.

"-By killing Per Degaton." Sara finished for him.

Alex scoffed, "great, so he dies anyway," She shook her head, upset with herself.

She couldn't believe she was actually on Rip's side in this scenario.

He was right. It was a strategic decision more than anything.

One life for a billion.

"Okay, so we don't have what we need to take out Savage," Alex thought aloud, trying to formulate a plan in her head, "but maybe now we can figure out a way to stop his rise to power."

Rip nodded, pointing at her in agreement, "By depriving him of his springboard, Per Degaton."

"Okay," Sara scratched her forehead, trying to understand everything that had just been decided, "how do we do that?"

Alex sighed, knowing they had no other choice.

"It's quite simple, really." Rip began, cut off by Leonard's smirk.

"We kill the little bastard ourselves."

She leaned forward, frowning at the decision they had made, "One life for a billion."

* * *

Alex hung her head between her arms as she sat on the stairs, Leonard sprawled out behind her.

She was so goddamn tired of debating the same thing over and over again.

"To be clear, we're talking about murdering a child-" Stein began, but Alex cut him off easily.

"Who will eventually kill billions of people" She shouted into the wide room, lifting her head up to face the rest of the team.

Jax was quick to rebut her argument "but hasn't done anything to anyone yet"

Kendra shook her head, unable to fathom killing a child, "There's got to be a better way."

"There isn't" Leonard called from his spot on the stairs, "Alex is right, we need to make sure this little bastard bites the dust,"

Her stomach squirmed at the language Leonard was using. Just because it was the logical solution didn't mean she agreed with the decision.

It was a strategic decision. Not an emotional one.

"How do we even know that this Per Degaton kid's path to becoming a world-ruling dictator is inevitable?" Ray offered up, trying to come up with an idea that didn't end up killing a child.

"Because in the future that I'm from," Rip interrupted, crushing Ray's dreams, "children learn about Per Degaton in the same way that children in your time learn about Adolf Hitler."

Alex grimaced at the comparison. That wasn't great.

All the more reason to deal with Per Degaton before he killed anyone else.

Stein, however, was determined to remain on the moral upright side, "What about addressing the larger societal problems that would allow such a despot's rise to power?"

Alex's laugh pierced the air, "That's great Martin, you have a couple of centuries to do so?"

The professor sighed in defeat and Leonard moved to support her again.

"Besides, we already know what pushes this punk to the dark side," He paused for dramatic effect, "Savage."

Alex pointed at Leonard, silently agreeing with his reasoning. She hated the idea, but what other choice did they have?

Jax, as always, sided with Stein, "Look, it's not the kid's fault he's got an immortal psychopath as his tutor."

"He's going to die anyway," Alex protested, "This way we save billions of lives and we have the chance to stop Savage's rise to power."

Rip nodded in agreement, "If he doesn't build him into the greatest tyrant the world has ever known," he began, taking in a deep breath, "Savage can't become the last tyrant the world will ever know."

"Murdering a child in cold blood just like Savage murdered your own son," Stein continued his moral upright argument, and Alex collapsed on the stairs with a sigh, "What's the use in saving the world if we stoop to his methods to do so?"

She placed her hands over her face, dragging them down in frustration. Debating with these people was sisyphean.

"I'm with Professor Stein," Ray announced, and Alex chuckled mirthlessly.

"Of course you are," She muttered under her breath.

Leonard finally offered another solution and Alex was starting to hail him as her own personal hero at that point.

"Okay, fine," Snart began, "If y'all don't have the guts to kill this kid-"

"Then removing him from the timeline might be the next best thing." Stein finished for Leonard. Alex sighed. At least this plan didn't involve any murder.

"Great, we've gone from infanticide to child abduction," Ray muttered under his breath, "Progress."

Rip pulled up something Alex couldn't see on Gideon's screen, "First we need to devise how to abduct him from underneath the noses of his father's private guard."

"And don't forget the army of Atom robots."

"We're going to need an accomplished thief." Rip turned to Leonard, who finally looked interested in the conversation.

"Well, while you're kidnapping baby Hitler," Ray continued, gesturing to Rip before looking over at the professor beside him, "Professor Stein and I will sabotage the robot army."

Stein nodded in agreement and Jax was the first one to speak up about which team he wanted to be on.

"I call Team Robot Army."

Sara shook her head at the plan, "Isn't that a waste of time?"

"Not for the Kasnian citizens who are tormented by my technology."

Alex scoffed inwardly.

Ray Palmer, always trying to save the world.

Rip nodded in Ray's direction, "That technology does lead to Savage's rise to power. Good backup plan" He complimented, "Take Alex with you,"

"What?" She protested, standing up from her position on the stairs, "Why do I get Team Robot Army?"

Rip shrugged, "Because frankly, you draw too much attention with the…" He gestured to her entire body, "Well everything."

Alex rolled her eyes, moving past Rip, "We all know that's not the real reason but sure go with that," She hissed as she passed him, making sure he was the only one who heard.

Rip rolled his eyes at her statement.

Sara sighed before raising her hand, "Fine, Team Kidnapping."

Rip lifted a fist, a weak "Go team," leaving his mouth as they went their separate ways.

* * *

Alex's heels clicked against the tile floor as she followed beside Ray, Stein, and Jax right behind them. A redheaded woman was giving them a tour of the facility, and Alex was canvassing every inch of the place in case they needed to return to stop the army of robots later on.

She couldn't even understand half of what the woman was saying anyway.

"Since the introduction of our latest line of autonomous law enforcement officers," The Doctor continued, showing off the skeletons of the ATOM suits, "crime has dropped precipitously. In fact, it's nonexistent."

Alex wanted to scoff. It was nonexistent because citizens had been forced into a police state.

Stein, however, could always find the good in these types of situations though, "Really? Well, thank you for showing us around, ."

Brice smiled as she gestured to the building surrounding them, "It's my pleasure. We don't get very many visitors from Central City ever since the S.T.A.R. Labs Corporation took it over."

Alex shoved her hands in the pockets of her grey coat, eyes monitoring every inch of the place. If this was the future, she was glad she would be dead before it came to light.

She and her mom may have long lives, but they weren't that long.

"Uh, unless I'm mistaken," Ray cleared his throat to speak up, "your tech utilizes a dwarf star alloy."

"The technology is proprietary, but yes," Brice responded, eyes creased in confusion, "How did you know, Doctor…"

It was a moment of tense silence as the woman asked for his name.

"Lecter." Ray came up with on the spot, " Lecter."

"Jesus Christ," Alex whispered under her breath, placing her head in her hands as they continued on their walk. Jax and Stein apparently felt the same way.

"So how did you get into robotics, Dr. Brice?" Stein changed the subject, desperate to try and make up for Ray's awful name choice.

The redhead smiled at the question, "Oh, well, it's in my blood." She said proudly, puffing out her chest, "Robotics have been a passion of my family ever since my great-great-great-great-grandfather founded this company."

They turned the corner, Alex's steps ceasing as she caught sight of the bust of the founder.

She withheld her surprised laughter, settling for an open mouth in shock.

It looked exactly like...

"Is that-"

"Oh, my God." Stein and Jax had echoed her exact thoughts and before she could stop it, a laugh erupted from her lips.

The bust was a perfect image of Ray Palmer himself.

And that's when it finally hit her.

He was a father. He was someone's grandfather.

He was married to someone else, he had a life with someone else.

Alex's stomach growled, twisting at the thought.

Oh no.

"Huh, weird." Brice exclaimed, "You look just like him."

* * *

She had stayed behind, not wanting to talk more about Ray's great-great-great-great granddaughter anymore than she had too.

Her relationship with him was already complicated enough.

Alex stared at the bust of Ray, still trying to figure out what exactly her feelings were for the man.

She couldn't hate him. No matter how hard she tried, he just couldn't. But he hadn't made any effort to try and improve their fractured relationship.

Did he even want to be friends anymore? Did she?

"Excuse me," Brice's voice interrupted her thoughts, "The tour is over, but I would happy to answer any questions you have, Miss…"

"Trevor," Alex responded, plastering a smile on her face, "And I was just admiring this gorgeous bust," She gestured to the statue, "It's a great likeness, I'm assuming?"

Brice smiled, a proud smile, clearly happy to be a part of such a successful family, "Follow me,"

Alex did as she was told, the red-head leading her down a winding hallway, portraits lining the walls.

Brice lead her into a small office, everything in pristine condition, "This was my great-great-great-great grandfather's office," She began, gesturing to the possessions in the room, "We've kept it in the best condition possible since his death, but if you wanted to see what he really looks like…"

She reached over the desk, pulling out a photograph, "here, it's a picture of him with my great-aunt,"

Alex smiled, glancing at the picture. Her lips dropped into a frown as she recognized the figure standing beside Ray.

It was herself, laughing with a glass of champagne in her hand as the picture was taken. She'd never seen herself look that happy in her life.

"You look just like her," Brice finally addressed the elephant in the room, "It's strange, she lived so long, I can remember her reading stories to me in my youth." The doctor laughed. Alex couldn't take her eyes off the photo.

"She never stayed for long though, always had somewhere else to be," Alex caught the hint of resentment in her voice and handed the frame back to her.

"This is beautiful, but I don't understand why-" Alex cut herself off, catching herself. She wanted to ask how she and Ray were still friends in the future. What this meant.

What brother did he have for her to marry?

Was she so stuck on him that she had to weasel her way into his family somehow?

Was letting him and Kendra be not enough?

"Why are you showing me this?" She asked instead, trying to figure out the woman's motives.

Brice shrugged. "I just...I guess I trust you for some reason." The doctor shrugged, placing the photo back on the desk, "The way you interacted with Dr. Lecter out there…it reminded me of my great aunt, I guess."

Alex chuckled involuntarily, sensing the sad nostalgia Brice was experiencing. She wanted something familiar. Something recognizable. "She sounds like a remarkable woman."

Brice shot another wistful glance at the photograph, "She was"

Alex's heart tugged at the sight, and she found herself taking pity on the young woman.

"Do you wanna get a coffee or something?" She asked, wanting to see the woman smile again, "On me."

Brice's eyes lit up, "Are you being serious?"

"Oh, I'm always serious about coffee," Alex joked, the two women sharing a laugh before leaving the office arm in arm.

* * *

The atmosphere was tenser than when she had left. The coffee meet up had done wonders for her attitude.

Turns out, talking with her future grandniece was somehow the best part of her entire day.

"Hey."

Alex stopped in her tracks, ignoring the way her stomach twisted at the sound of Ray's voice. It was bad enough she wasn't over her anger at him, but this situation had skyrocketed the awkwardness up to a whole new level.

"Hey," She responded, plastering a fake smile on her face, "What did you need?"

Ray creased his brow, worry clouding his dark gaze, "Well I was worried when you didn't come back right away," He admitted, "I thought maybe…"

"What?" Alex scoffed, "That I had been scared off by your family?"

Ray chuckled, his nerves manifesting in a twitch below his eye, "Well, we don't know for sure she's family, I mean she could be-"

"Ray," She cut him off, moving closer, "I saw a picture of her great grandfather," Alex paused, clearing her throat before continuing, "He looks too much like you to be anyone else."

Ray bobbed his head, as if not fully convinced it was his relative out there programming his creation to be evil. "She showed you a picture?" He asked, a slight upturn to his lips, "Why?"

Alex shrugged, letting her nerves knot themselves in her stomach as she lied once again to him, "I don't know, she said I reminded her of another dead relative."

Not a lie. She told herself. A half-truth.

Ray chuckled, "So what? You bonded over robotics and went out for mimosas?" He teased.

"Coffee actually," She patted his shoulder as she walked by, her body screaming out for more as she moved past him.

She hesitated at the end of the hallway, turning around to face the worried inventor, "You know, she's not that bad," Alex told Ray, recalling how happy she felt after the encounter, "She's actually really intelligent and full of that stupid Palmer optimism."

Ray smirked at her comment, gaining a small chuckle from the man.

Alex smiled softly, "You want a family? It's right outside that door"

She pointed toward the Waverider exit as her lips twisted to the side and she continued down the path to the bridge.

"So," Leonard joined her in the hallway on the way down, "You and Raymond seem to be getting along again."

Alex let out another sigh, "Do you just wait in hallways to start conversations about people's love lives?"

Leonard smirked at that, "Only yours,"

"Wow, I'm flattered," Sarcasm dripped from her voice, ignoring his previous statement.

Leonard followed her again, "May I suggest some advice?"

Alex stopped in her tracks and finally faced him, crossing her arms, "No, but I get the feeling you're going to anyway."

"Go easy on the boy scout," He told her, "He probably feels just as bad as you do about the whole thing."

Alex scoffed, waiting a second before continuing down to the bridge, "You give terrible advice," was all she said.

The ship shook and Alex grabbed the wall to brace herself. The two of them shared a look before running down to the bridge, hoping to find some answers.

"What the hell was that?" She asked as she moved to where the rest of the team was surrounding the table in the middle of the room.

Sara sighed, "Rip took the jumpship" the assassin paused before letting her know how bad the situation really was, "And Per Degaton."

Alex's eyes widened as her anger finally spilled out, "And you let him? What happened to kidnapping?"

Stein shook his head, "Apparently it did nothing. NO matter where Per Degaton is in the timeline, it does nothing to stop Savage's rise to power."

Alex shook her head. "If kidnapping did nothing then why does he think that murdering will be any different?"

Jax was quick to defend their captain, "Rip is not a murderer."

"He isn't?" Alex challenged, "Because that's all he's been advocating for since we found out about Per Degaton."

"To Captain Hunter, this isn't about killing," Stein interjected, trying to explain Rip's mindset, "It's about saving."

She let out a defeated sigh, "One life for a billion."

Stein nodded, "His son's life for Per Degaton's." It was all starting to make sense now, "Rather simple if cold-blooded calculus for a father to undertake."

His statement caused Alex to wander.

If what he was saying was true, would her father have stayed around if he knew about her?

Would he have gotten on that plane at all?

She was still locked in her thoughts when most of the team had left the bridge, leaving her alone with Martin as they examined possible places Rip would have disappeared to.

The ship shook again, harder than the last time, circuits sparking. If it hadn't been for her grip on the table, she probably would've been tossed to the ground.

"Gideon?" Stein asked, the AI explaining that Per Degaton's father had gathered his forces to attack the ship.

The rest of the team reappeared and Alex was already handing out orders.

"Gideon, can you fire back?"

Jax answered for her instead, "The robots targeted our weapons systems,"

Ray straightened up and turned to Alex with a wide smile on his face, "We don't need weapons."

Stein backed him up, "He's right, we have superpowers."

Alex and Sara shared a look and nodded as they headed to their rooms. She pulled on her armor, twisting her wrist to loosen it up before the battle, following Firestorm and the rest of the team out of the Waverider.

Alex charged forward, blocking several blows from the ground troops, sending a kick into the chest of another one, the soldier flying backward into one of the warehouses.

She tore her tiara from her head, sending it flying through the crowds of soldiers, knocking several of them out before it returned to her, launching another kick at the soldier in front of her before placing it back on her head.

A red blur crashed to the ground, and Alex looked up just in time to see Ray's figure land a few feet away from her.

"Ray!" She called pushing through the onslaught to reach him.

She helped him up from his stunned state, "So this is what it feels like to be last year's model." He groaned, eliciting a chuckle from the woman who had helped him up, "They're too fast. We have to find another way."

Firestorm landed next to the two of them, "Forget about them." He said confidently, "We'll hold off the robots."

Alex nodded, an idea coming to her head, "We can take out their command center."

Ray nodded and Alex leaped upward, landing just outside the robotics building, sidewalk cracking upon impact. She ran inside, yelling for everyone to evacuate the building while she caught up with Ray.

Alex kicked down the door, sword brandished, causing the man in front of them to shoot up from his position in the chair.

"Who are you?" The nervous techie demanded, his confident facade faltering at the sight of the two heroes before him.

Ray shrugged before landing a punch to the man's jaw, sending him collapsing to the floor. "Yeah."

Alex moved to join Ray, Jax's voice sounding urgent over the comms.

"Ray, hurry up. I can only hold them back for so long."

His fingers flew across the keyboard, pulling up the active schematics to find a way to shut the entire suit down for good. "Almost got it," Ray murmured under his breath.

Alex held hers.

The click of a gun forced her to release it and she whipped around, coming face to face with the young doctor who had escorted them around the building earlier.

Brice's eyes widened at the sight of Alex's uniform, her mouth dropping open in shock. "It really is you," She spoke softly before shaking her head and pointing the gun at Ray, "Where did you get your suit?" Her voice became hostile again, forced to put on a cold exterior.

Alex wanted to chuckle, of course, she sounded like Ray when she was scared.

Ray moved beside Alex, his hands held up in a gesture of surrender, nerves practically radiating off of him.

"Look," Ray began, trying to calm the redhead down, "if you don't let us disable your evil robot army, then the whole world will be destroyed."

Brice scoffed, not lowering her gun, "They're designed to bring peace."

Ray shot a look at Alex beside him, a heavy look in his eyes. With a sigh he lowered his hands, "I know," He removed his helmet so she could see his face, "I designed the robots."

Brice was very clearly taken aback, "What?"

Ray sighed, clearly upset with the distraction, "I am your great-great-great-great-grandfather," Alex placed her forehead in her palm. This was the best idea he could come up with? Revealing time travel to the woman in charge of a robot army? Even if she is one of the nicest people Alex had met on her travels, that didn't mean she could be trusted.

"the guy you have a bust of in your lobby," Ray continued, as if it was obvious, "father of the robotics industry."

Brice lowered her gun slightly, but not enough to feel safe, her brow raising skeptically, "You're trying to tell me that you're Sidney Palmer?"

Alex hesitated, still processing the information she had been given. Her response was cut off by Ray's outburst, "Wait...the bust in your lobby is of my stupid brother?!" He scoffed, clearly upset by this new development. If Alex had to hazard a guess, he and his brother did not get along, "Of course. He must have gone to work for Felicity in 2016 after I vanished." He continued to think aloud, not letting anyone else get a word in, "He allowed my tech to be perverted by the defense industry, That is...so Sidney." Ray snarled, still caught up in his own bubble.

"Anyway," Alex continued, finally getting a chance to talk to the other woman, "I am who you think I am," she continued, hoping the girl would understand without revealing their relation to Ray, "But right now, I think we have more important things to worry about" She spoke that last part to Ray, reminding him that they had a mission to complete.

"I'm not a father." Ray sounded so defeated, and Alex couldn't help the pang of sympathy that clung to her chest.

Everything she had known was a lie. If this timeline stayed intact, then the picture of her and Ray was actually a picture of her and Sidney, and somehow that was more upsetting.

Because somehow she ended up being Brice's great aunt.

Somehow she ended up with Ray.

Against her own will, her future was set, and that was scarier than anything she had encountered so far.

Alex swallowed her nerves and turned to face the redhead, "We still need your help disabling the robots." She explained.

Brice still refused to lower the gun, "and-and why should I help you?"

Ray's face fell and Alex moved forward, knowing exactly what to say.

"Because you're a Palmer," Alex stated with a smirk on her face, "It's in your blood."

Brice nodded and sat in the chair, disabling the army, and actually giving the Legends a fighting chance against Savage.

Just as they were leaving, Alex stopped herself, placing her hand on Brice's arm, "Thank you."

The redhead nodded, a soft smile on her lips as she watched her two relatives disappear from view.

* * *

"I can't believe I got to see you in action," Brice bounced on the balls of her feet, her smile wide as she stared at the two women in front of her, "My mom always told me stories of you in your prime, armor and everything,"

Alex chuckled at the excitement. Maybe this was how her mom felt all the time when meeting people.

"You do realize we have to erase your memory of everything?" Kendra spoke beside Alex, holding the device in her hand.

Brice nodded sadly, staring at the ground, "Oh I almost forgot!" The redhead reached into her bag, holding out a small piece of paper to the older woman, "I double-checked the photo, it's not you and Sidney after all."

Alex glanced at the scrawl across the back, only able to make out a couple of sentences.

**_Ray and Alex, engagement party 2020_**

She swallowed the lump in her throat and turned the picture over, gazing at the bright smiles the two of them were wearing. If this was real, if her future was already set from the moment she landed on Earth-1…

She smiled instead, "Thank you, Brice," Alex responded, tucking the photo into her pocket, "It was really great getting to know you,"

The redhead smiled at her compliment, "You too Auntie,"

A flash of light went off and the two women left Brice to continue her tour.

"She called you Auntie," Kendra was the first one to talk, and of course it was the one thing Alex didn't want to talk about.

Alex nodded, trying to pretend it didn't bother her, "Apparently I'm her great whatever aunt in this timeline," She said nonchalantly, hoping Kendra would drop the subject.

She didn't. Instead, the woman stopped Alex in her tracks, freezing just outside of the Waverider.

"Have you told Ray about-"

"No," Alex cut her off sharply, not even entertaining the idea, "And I don't plan to, so please don't tell him."

Kendra scoffed, "This is too important Alex, you need to have a conversation with him,"

"Oh what, like you did about Carter?"

Kendra went silent at that. Alex knew it was a low blow, but she didn't have any other cards to play.

"I respected your decision back then, please respect mine now."

Without another word she marched into the Waverider, accidentally bumping into Ray on her way to her bedroom.

"Oh hey!" His voice was cheerier than it usually was, "I was looking for you,"

The lump formed in her throat again, the picture feeling like a heavy weight in her back pocket, "You were?"

"Yeah, I uh, wanted to thank you for helping me out back there," Ray responded, his lips turning up slightly, "And uh, I'm sorry for what happened in 1958,"

Alex's chest constricted at his apology. She hadn't been ready for this conversation, and now it was happening.

"I shouldn't have lashed out," Ray continued, biting the inside of his cheek, "You were right, it was too soon to propose something like that." He paused, "It was stupid, immature, and untrue."

Alex nodded, her the lump growing too big to allow for words to form.

"I really want us to be friends again," Ray admitted, "I hope you can forgive me."

The truth was she had forgiven him the moment she had seen him again. She had been angry of course, but she'd always forgiven him.

It was who she was. And she hated it.

"Of course," She choked out, falling into Ray's embrace, hiding the nervous look on her face before breaking apart.

Gideon's voice chimed in, informing the two of them that they were needed on the bridge immediately.

"I should go find Kendra," Ray finally spoke up after thanking the AI, "She doesn't know about-"

"Yeah," Alex shook herself free of her stupor, "Go, I'll uh, I'll see you on the bridge."

He smiled as he left, a little skip in his step. When she was sure Ray had disappeared for good, she pulled the picture out of her pocket, thumbing the crease she had created.


	18. The Magnificent Nine

Alex adjusted the corset around her waist, forcing herself to take deep breaths in and out.

She'd always liked the idea of being a saloon girl, but dressing like one was absolute hell.

"You doing okay?" Sara teased, giving her a once over, a smirk on her face.

Alex chuckled through the pain, "Yeah, I just..I probably shouldn't be in this for too long."

"Well if it's any consolation," Sara began, her smirk growing wider as she checked Alex out again, "You look hot."

The two women shared a laugh, their fun cut short by the appearance of Rip, no doubt there to give them another lecture.

"Now, the fabricator can make clothing," Rip began, offering guns to Alex and Sara on either side of him, "but you're also going to need era-appropriate protection. This era can get a little, uh, rough."

Jax was grinning from ear to ear as he held the weapon in his hands, "Oh, six-shooters?"

"Actually, most guns of that time period had hammer blocks," Ray interrupted, grinning like a kid on Christmas day. Alex had never seen him look so happy, "thus reducing the number of shots to five."

She chuckled, something fizzing in her chest as he rambled on.

Rip sighed, heading back toward the main door of the fabricator room, "Now, this should go without saying, but considering this group, I am going to say it," He continued, shooting a pointed look at Snart and Rory, "only use these weapons in the case of extreme emergencies."

Sara and Alex pointed their guns forward, getting used to the feel of the revolver in their hands.

"What's the matter Rip?" Alex teased, shoving the gun in her holster, "You're not a fan of the Old West?"

The Captain shook his head, hesitating, as if choosing his next words carefully, "Indeed I am. But my time is best spent back here on the ship, plotting our next move against Vandal Savage," Alex watched his eyes shift to the left, toward the ground, and she simply shrugged, not having the mental energy to deal with Rip's cryptic words right now, "Besides, as Mr. Rory says, it's only a matter of time before the Hunters find us here."

Snart smirked as he clasped the Captain's shoulder, tipping his hat, "Don't worry. We're not going to put down roots."

Sara cocked her revolver again, "Yeah, we'll stay out of trouble."

Rip shot one last gaze around the room, "Mm, how I hope and pray that to be true."

As they walked through the town, Alex couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched.

She felt invincible as they strode through the saloon doors, but her hair crept up on the back of her neck, that same eerie feeling never leaving her even as she took her seat next to Jax and across from Ray in the booth.

"I can't believe we're really here," The taller man whispered excitedly, "When I was a kid, my brother and I would play cowboys and indians all the time,"

An awkward pause hung over the trio and Alex tried not to choke on the beer they had been served.

Ray grimaced, "Which I now realize is an awful stereotype."

Jax nodded in agreement, "Yeah dude,"

Alex chuckled at the two, "I never saw Westerns as a kid," She admitted, watching surprise pass over Ray's face, "The first one I saw was Tombstone, and my friend insisted I watched it because it was a 'classic' in his eyes."

"That's because it is," Ray scoffed, disbelief in his gaze.

Jax however, decided to focus on the other part of that statement, "You had friends?"  
Alex slapped him gently in the shoulder, his laugh echoing in her ears, cut off by the sound of a gunshot coming from the card table.

The trio turned toward the sound, and Alex saw the smoking gun in Leonard's hands.

Great. Exactly what they needed right now.

She couldn't hear the conversation, but when an unknown man went for a punch, Alex didn't need an explanation. Standing up, she readied herself for a fight, breaking a chair over one of the gang member's heads, using the broken leg to block the blows coming her way.

She curled her fists, smacking them against the man's jaw, sending him reeling before her foot collided with his ass, sending him flying through the now broken window.

"Alex look out!" Ray called. She spun around in time to dodge a fist to the face, which Ray graciously returned before she pushed the man into one of the pillars of the bar, the fight coming to an end with the sound of several gunshots being fired into the air.

"All right!" The man yelled, his southern accent catching her off guard, "Playtime's over, Anybody's got a problem with that, they answer to me."

The bar slowly dispersed, and Alex panted heavily, a wide smile on her face as she met Ray's gaze.

"We just got into a bar brawl," He grinned excitedly, and Alex couldn't help but laugh.

They followed Stein out of the bar, the hairs on the back of Alex's neck standing up again as she stared at the man who had broken up the fight.

Jonah Hex, he had told them.

And she didn't like him one bit.

"All right. Why don't you folks tell me where you're really from?" Jonah challenged, not looking at any of them.

Ray was the first person to respond, "I'm not sure that's any of your business, sir."

Hex sighed, finally turning to face the group, a certain glint in his eyes as he scanned them.

"Let me rephrase that, Tell me_ when_ y'all from."

That caught them all of guard. Alex dropped her arms to her side, uncomfortable with the idea that someone else knew that they were time travelers.

"You seven stick out like a dog in a manger." Hex explained, scoffing softly, "You think you're the first time travelers I've ever come across?"

"Uh, Yeah." Alex and Stein spoke at the same time, not happy with how the tables had been turned.

Hex turned to Sara, the glint disappearing as a more serious look crossed his face, accentuated by the scar tissue, "Where is he? I got some words that need saying."

Sara never wavered under his gaze, "Where is who?"

"Rip Hunter."

* * *

"I'm getting really sick of Rip not telling us everything upfront," Sara complained, keeping watch for Alex as she changed into something more comfortable.

"Yeah no kidding," Alex agreed, buttoning the wide-legged pants and slipping her boots on. Rip had been keeping secrets from them since the beginning, and she was getting tired of it. If he wanted them to trust him, then he had to prove that he was worthy of being trusted. She pulled on her duster and adjusted her hat, following Sara out of the fabricator room and toward the bridge, running into Kendra.

"Hey," Sara stopped the woman, "Bridge is, uh, that way." She pointed the opposite way the other woman was walking.

She looked distracted, like something had rattled her back at the saloon, "Yeah, I'm not going to the bridge." Kendra informed them, "I'm, uh-Where am I going, Gideon?"

The AI chimed in with directions, "The valley you described is consistent with Albano Gulch."

"Why are you headed there?" Alex asked, trying to understand what had caused Kendra to want to go off on her own.

The hawkwoman sighed, upset with having to explain herself again, "Back at the saloon, I ran into a woman," Kendra began, a hurried tone in her voice, "and she caused me to have more memory flashes, so I think I might have known her in one of my past lives." Alex knew where this was headed and she didn't like it one bit, "And if so, she might be able to help me find Carter." Kendra explained, continuing to walk toward the exit.

Sara stopped her again, "Wait. So you're just gonna run out there and try and find her?"

"Actually, I was planning on flying."

Alex scoffed, "and how were you going to explain that to the town?"

The other woman rolled her eyes, but hesitated. Alex knew she had hit the right spot.

Sara shared a look with Alex, a gleam in her eye, "You want a couple of partners in crime?"

Kendra raised a skeptical brow, her brown eyes lingering on Alex's figure, "Okay, fine, how do you propose we get there?"

Sara and Alex shared another look. They knew exactly how they were getting there.

The horses were relatively easy to find, and thanks to Alex's childhood training, they didn't take too long to tame either.

She relished in the wind blowing her hair back, closing her eyes as the rhythm of the horse's hooves reminded her of the many days she spent on Themyscira, riding until she reached the edge of the island, gazing out over the bright blue waves, wishing to go back home. Back to the world of man.

She stayed in that memory until they reached the valley they had been looking for, dismounting and rewarding the horse with a sugar cube she had stolen from the Waverider, gently petting the animal's nose as she tied up the reins, joining Sara and Kendra in examining the valley.

Their trip had taken up most of the day, and the sun was already beginning to set.

"I wonder why she lives alone all the way out here," Kendra muttered aloud, confusion settling across her face.

"Probably because she doesn't want to be disturbed," Alex tried to answer, hairs pricking up again, and her hand hovered over her revolver.

The sound of a shotgun being cocked was heard and an older woman emerged from the brush, a wild look in her eyes, "You're damn right I don't wanna be disturbed!"

Kendra placed herself in front of the shotgun, gesturing for Sara and Alex to lower their weapons. They didn't.

"Wait, wait, wait," Kendra tried to talk the woman down, "Don't you remember me from the saloon back in Salvation?"

"I remembered you, you wigged-out little girl. If I'd wanted to talk to you then, I would have talked to you then. I ain't fixing to talk to you now. Now, get off my land!"

"Listen," Sara spoke up, not lowering her revolver until the other woman did, "we're not trying to start any trouble."

The older woman snarled at the three of them, "Do you want that pretty little mouth of yours filled with lead?"

Alex launched a warning shot into the ground, "Do you want yours?"

The two women stared at each other, tension like a taut cord ready to break at any moment. The older woman never dropped her weapon. Neither did Alex.

It was a standoff, and Alex wasn't sure she'd even win. But she'd protect Sara as best she could.

"I don't think your friend wants to talk" Alex muttered, anger stirring just under the surface. She was tired of everyone trying to kill her and her friends all the time.

"I ain't got friends!" The older woman yelled, "I keep to myself."

Kendra pressed forward again, realization hitting her face, "She's right. She wasn't my friend. I was her."

Sara and Alex shared a look of confusion before the older woman set down her shotgun, Alex and Sara following suit. The sun was nearly gone now, darkness settling over the four of them as the older woman fixed a fire, handing them cups of tea to drink out of.

Alex still didn't feel safe, even knowing that she was a past incarnation of Kendra.

She handed a photo to the current version of Kendra, smiling as she did.

"We sat for that picture at the county fair, 1830," The older woman explained, and Alex snuck a peek. "He looked like such a gentleman."

The couple looked so happy, the same way Alex did in the photo Brice had given her on their last mission.

Kendra smiled as she handed the picture back to her past self, "What was his name?"

"Hannibal. Hannibal Hawkes."

"And what happened?" Alex asked, hoping to understand exactly how Savage was able to find them over and over again.

The older woman hesitated, clearly upset with the question.

Sara saved the day, "Was it Savage?"

The older woman nodded.

Kendra examined the picture again, asking about a beautiful bracelet her past self had been wearing.

"That was ours in our first life." The older woman explained, pouring herself another cup of tea.

"I remember."

Alex watched Kendra stare off into the distance, the way she always did when she got a flashback.

The two women weren't even paying attention to what the older woman was saying, Alex was too focused on making sure that Kendra didn't get lost in her thoughts, and Kendra was too busy staring at the photo.

"Do you still have it?" Alex asked, finally understanding why Kendra was so focused on the bracelet, remembering what Rip had said way back when they were first dealing with Savage.

The older woman shook her head sadly, "We lost it to bandits about a year later. We heard that the Pinkertons were after the same bandits, but we just-"

Sara cut the woman off and turned toward Kendra, "Hey. What is it?"

Kendra finally broke free of her trance, facing Sara and Alex, "Objects present at the moment of my our first death can be used to kill Savage." She explained, an idea forming in her head, "So, if I can get my hands on that bracelet, then-"

"You're going to try to kill Savage with a bracelet?" Her past self scoffed, anger spilling out, "You need to stop."

"Stop what?"

"Fighting our destiny." The older woman urged, a hint of frustration crossing her face, "Ain't destiny what brought you here?"

Sara creased her eyebrows together, "What part of destiny is she fighting?"

The older woman's expression dropped, an upset look in her eyes, "All of it. We get reborn. We find Hannibal or Carter then Savage finds us," The woman hesitated, letting out a reluctant sigh, "and then we die. That's the way it is. It's the way it's always gonna be."

Alex couldn't listen anymore.

If what the older woman was saying was true, then that meant that Ray was screwed no matter what. That meant that she had willingly contributed to Ray's eventual heartbreak.

Because Kendra will either choose Carter or die, and Alex refused to believe the latter.

She had to tell Ray soon.

It was the only way to make sure their relationship would actually work. It was the only way to protect Ray from whatever comes next.

When they got back to the ship, Alex hung back, trying to figure out what the hell she was supposed to do.

She had made Kendra a promise weeks ago, but this clearly made her reconsider right? Clearly her experience with her older self would help her see that she can't lie to Ray anymore.

It has to.

She walked up the ramp and joined the other woman, Kendra chewed on her lip as she faced the wall.

"I know what you're going to say," She began, noticing Alex's presence and turning around to face the other woman.

Alex crossed her arms, "You have to tell him, Kendra," She began, "He deserves to know."

Kendra shook her head, "No I don't," She spoke up, "What happened in my past lives shouldn't affect me now-"

"But it does," Alex's tone was clipped, annoyed with the other woman's wishy-washy behavior, "Everything you've done, past or present, always affects you now. And if that woman is correct-"

"We don't know if she is!"

Alex scoffed, pressing forward, "Yes we do!" Kendra was taken aback by her sudden outburst, "She's lived your life, loved other men, she was your age when Savage killed her husband. Of course, she knows what it's like!" The words were spilling out now, and everything that Alex had been holding back was now coming forth. She wouldn't take part in this anymore. She wouldn't hurt Ray anymore than she already had.

"Since 1958, you have been torn between Ray and Carter," Alex began, her voice increasing, "And I let you drag me into it, because I supported you, because I know how it felt," Her anger was bubbling to the surface, boiling over the pot she had kept it concealed in, "I have kept this a secret for far too long, and I can't, I won't be a part of it anymore."

Kendra sat in stunned silence, shock in her eyes as she grew angrier at Alex's words. "What are you saying?"  
Alex huffed, letting the tension build between them as she moved closer, only a few inches between the two women. She clenched her jaw, laying everything out on the table.

She was tired of being a doormat.

She was tired of prioritizing someone else's feelings.

She wanted to be herself again.

"If you don't tell Ray about this afternoon, and the flashes…" Alex began, leaving her threat hanging for a while, Kendra gulping as she waited for the other half of the statement, "Then I will."

Kendra pressed forward, her frown turning slightly upward into a knowing smirk, "You tell Ray about the flashes?" Her smirk disappeared, replaced with bared teeth, "Then I'll tell him about the photo."

They were at a crossroads here.

Alex knew she was in the right here. Ray didn't need to know his future, the same way Kendra didn't. It was too dangerous.

But Kendra had been lying about her relationship with him since 1958. Two years of leading him on, promising to marry him, and then setting him up for eventual heartbreak.

And Alex had let herself be dragged into it.

"I'm keeping it a secret to protect him," Alex growled, her voice low as she narrowed her eyes at the woman in front of her, "Ray doesn't need to know his future. You're keeping Carter a secret to protect _you_."

Her words hung in the air as she pushed past Kendra, marching off toward the bridge of the Waverider, breathing shallowly at the thought of Ray finding the picture, of Kendra telling him about the picture.

And she knew there was only one thing left to do.

"Gideon," Alex began, acknowledging the AI.

"Yes, Miss Prince?"

Alex's hands shook and she curled them into fists to calm herself down, "I need you to fabricate a candle and some matches please."

"Right away Miss Prince."

The walk to her room was quick. Her pace picking up as she moved through the halls.

A familiar figure was sprawled across her bed, holding the piece of paper she was looking for in its hands.

"Looking for this Girl Scout?" Leonard smirked, waving the picture in front of her face.

"Leonard, please," Alex begged, pressing forward, no sarcasm at all in her tone, "I need that photo."

Snart smirked, standing up from his position in the bed, reading from the back of the card, "Ray and Alex, engagement party 2020" Leonard's smirk grew wider, eyes dancing, "Mazel Tov, should I be offended I didn't get an invitation?"

Alex rolled her eyes, she didn't have time for this, "Leonard enough, this isn't funny."

"No, I think it is," The space between them was too close, barely an inch. "Because sometime in the next five years you and Raymond decide to tie the knot and you haven't told him yet."

She didn't need to have this conversation right now.

And she certainly wasn't going to have this conversation with Leonard.

"Because he doesn't need to know," She explained as if it was obvious, plucking the photo from his tight grip, "Time is cement and all that bullshit."  
She could feel Leonard's cold stare against her back as she stared at the piece of film in her hand. This was the only way.

She was doing this to protect Ray. Leonard plucked the picture from her hands again, clearly not done with this conversation.

"You sure this is entirely about Raymond?" He smirked, "Because I think this is about you."

Alex shook her head, sticking her tongue through her teeth, "This is about protecting Ray" She insisted, "No one should know too much about their own future, you saw what it did to him when we first got here."

"Yes, and your little speech refueled his annoying optimism," Leonard drawled, wandering around her room, playing with what little possessions she had.

Alex let out a frustrated sigh, "Are you gonna give me the picture or not?"

Leonard's smirk drew itself on his face again and he whipped around to meet her gaze, pocketing the photo. "I think I might hold onto it for a while. See what happens."

She bit her lip, she really was left with no choice.

"Then I'm sorry," She responded cryptically.

"For what?"  
"This." She launched a roundhouse kick into his chest at full strength, sending him colliding with the wall. He recovered enough to launch a fist in her direction, which she caught and twisted, hearing the distinct pop of his shoulder leaving its socket.

Snart let out a scream and she dug into his jacket for the photo, placing it in her large pants pocket before pushing the shoulder back into place, "That should feel better in a few hours, sorry Leonard."

Leaving him squirming on her bedroom floor, she stopped by the fabricator to grab her candle and matches and moved to the lab, since her room was officially off-limits.

By some divine luck, no one was there and she felt herself sigh in relief.

"Are you sure you want to do this Miss Prince?" Gideon's electronic voice came over the PA.

Alex rolled her eyes, annoyance filling her back up again, "Not you too Gideon."

"It is a potential hazard and you did just dislocate Mr. Snart's arm." Gideon continued, "Perhaps I should advise you-"

"Gideon, I love you," Alex began, not wanting any more distractions, "But this is something I need to do."

"Yes, Miss Prince."

She lit the wick, watching the red and yellow flames flicker back and forth as she grabbed a metal cup to place the photo in later.

Alex gently touched the tip of the photo to the fire, the paper engulfed in seconds, the only remnant of their future burned away.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" Mick's voice came from beside her, causing her to flinch slightly. "The bright colors all you can see, the flames enveloping everything you know," His stare never left the burning photo in the cup.

She joined him, watching everything burn away, curling over on itself slowly, almost reluctantly.

"You were right," Mick's voice interrupted her thoughts again, "Too much knowledge about one's future is dangerous, especially now."

"Then why doesn't it feel good?" Alex asked flatly, no emotion in her voice whatsoever. Her chest constricted and she couldn't look at the sight anymore, turning around to leave the Lab and the burning picture behind.

* * *

She ran into Sara on her way toward the bridge. The blonde was twirling her bo staff, retracting it and placing it in the pocket of her duster.

"What's going on?" Alex asked, leaning against the wall. Sara smirked and tossed her a black cylinder.

"Ray and Rip got themselves in trouble again," Sara teased, gesturing to the cylinder she had just handed to Alex, "But he did manage to make that for you before he went off to his stand-off."

Alex gripped the object in her hand, noticing the way it felt like a hilt in her hands, the soft leather providing a nice comfort to her. She whipped it forward, the way she would with her lasso, the separate parts of the blade held together with a tight string, clicking together to form a blade, which she took a few swings with before retracting it again.

Alex smiled at the weapon. Ray had built this for her. He had made sure she would always have a way to protect herself.

"Let's go stop those dumbasses from getting themselves killed," She encouraged, stuffing the sword in her pocket.

Alex stood next to Ray and Sara, eagerly waiting for Stillwater's people to arrive with Jax in tow so they could finally start this duel.

She didn't know much about Rip, but she was grateful for him stepping up so Ray didn't get himself killed trying to be a hero.

Leonard led Stillwater out into the dusty streets, the gang leader trading words with her friend before being cut free.

Waiting was worse than watching. Alex wasn't sure how much faith she had in Rip, but if he survived this, she'd never dispute a thing he said again.

A camera was poised, ready to take a picture whenever they drew their guns. Ray counted down and a bang echoed through the old town, Rip's gun smoking as a flash went off, capturing the historic moment on film forever.

Cheers erupted from the town as Jax was set free, the gang trotting away and Alex embraced the kid in her arms, releasing him so he could reunite with Stein and thank Rip.

Unfortunately, she caught a glimpse of grey armor out of the corner of her eye, the sound of heavy footsteps growing closer.

"I don't think we're done here yet," Sara spoke, drawing everyone's attention to the Hunters who had now found them.

Citizens began to run, and when the cameraman almost pushed her down, she finally realized how they had found them.

The picture.

"Oh, no." Rip gulped, staring down the line of bounty hunters, "They found us."

Alex ducked behind a building, avoiding the laser blasts. She reached for the sword in her pocket, whipping it forward before jumping into the street, Sara beside her, her bo staff at the ready.

There were only six of them, but somehow it felt like they were fighting an entire army at once. She parried the blows and landed a roundhouse kick in the Hunter's head, sending him stumbling back, snarling as he went for another attack. She flipped over his charge, landing on her feet and stabbing the sword through his armor, piercing his skin. She pulled the weapon free, the Hunter collapsing to his knees before landing face first in the dirt.

She heard the distinct snap of a neck and another Hunter fell at Mick's feet, the fight over as quickly as it had begun.

* * *

She found Ray in the Lab, fixing some of the damage that had been done to his suit.

"Hey," Alex smiled, moving to his side.

Ray returned the smile, "Hey," He continued to work on his suit, the machinery sparking as he began to put the pieces back together.

"I wanted to thank you," She announced, placing the retractable weapon on the counter, "For the weapon, it's...amazing."

Ray smiled at her praise, twirling his work in his hands, "It's yours," He admitted, placing the weapon back in her hands, their fingers grazing each other's palms, shivers erupting down her back at the touch.

"I uh...I made it for you," Ray confessed, still not letting go of her hand. Alex nodded, tearing her fingers away from the soft touch, curling them around the hilt.

"Well, thank you," She smiled, clutching the hilt to her chest as she left the room, not wanting to look back. She forced herself to breathe slowly, deeply, so she wasn't overwhelmed. She leaned against the closed door of the lab, a soft laugh escaping her lips as she shoved the hilt in her pocket, a grin spreading across her entire face.

She didn't even notice the lingering look Ray was sending her way, and when he was sure she was gone, he removed his stack of books to reveal the edge of the exact photo she had burned that day.

"Gideon," He requested.

"Yes, Mr. Palmer?"

"Can you recreate this picture?"

The AI was silent, as if afraid of what would happen if she said yes. Technically she could, but she knew it was wrong. Alex wanted that photo a secret, even threatened her if Gideon revealed it.

"I can certainly try Mr. Palmer."

Ray watched as the picture began to repair itself, the damage from the fire being repaired as a figure began to appear, and he stumbled back as he realized who it was. It was Alex, a wide smile on her face, as if she had been laughing when the picture had been taken.

He caught the glimpse of a masculine hand by her side, the edge of a suit appearing, but before he could figure it out, the fabrication process stopped.

"Gideon, what's going on?" He asked, something desperate tugging at his chest, demanding he find out who the man in the photo was. "Why'd you stop?"

"I'm afraid that's all I saw Mr. Palmer." The AI announced, "I, unfortunately, cannot fabricate something I have not seen."

Ray sighed, running his hands through his hair. He stared at Alex's figure for a while before turning the picture over, dropping the paper as he read the messy scrawl on the back.

**Engagement Party, 2020.**

* * *

Alex joined the rest of the crew on the bridge, waiting for their next move. The hunters were gone, so it should be back to Savage now.

"So where to now?" Snart asked, joining Alex by her side.

Sara followed suit, flanking her other side, "Or, more specifically, when?"

"Maybe there's another Salvation we can hide in," Alex offered, moving to search the timeline. Rip stopped her hand.

"Unfortunately, matters are not quite so simple."

Alex sighed, and Jax said exactly what she was thinking, "How'd I know you were gonna say something like that?"

This time it was Mick who answered, "The Time Masters have issued Omega Protocols on all of us."

Alex didn't know what it meant, but the way Mick said it didn't sound good.

"The worst kind of order they can issue," Mick continued, "they've sent the Pilgrim after us."

"The Pilgrim?" Alex asked, trying to get a better sense of what they were up against.

Rip answered this time, "The Pilgrim is the Time Masters' most deadly assassin, and she will stop at nothing until each and every one of you is dead."

Leonard wasn't taking any of this seriously, "Ooh, scary," He mocked, "Pretty sure we can handle ourselves."

Rip nodded, "Indeed which is why she won't be going after the present-day versions of you."

Alex creased her brow, sharing a look with Sara as the two of them tried to understand what was happening.

"She's hunting our younger selves." Mick explained, "And she won't stop until each and every one of us has been erased from the timeline."


	19. Last Refuge

heard the sound of the laser fire, Alex popped out of the brush, sweeping in to grab teenage Mick Rory and escort him back to the Waverider.

"Come with us if you want to live," Ray's serious expression didn't last long, grinning at Alex as she tightened her grip on the young arsonist, "I always wanted to say that."

She chuckled and pressed forward, meeting the rest of the group just outside of the young kid's burning house.

"Excellent work Miss Prince and Mr. Palmer," Rip smiled at both of them, flashing young Mick with the memory altering device and bringing him aboard the camoflagued ship.

"You and the boy scout have fun?" Leonard teased and she smacked him on the head, shaking hers as she boarded the ship, letting Jax handle young Mick Rory.

One was enough for her to deal with.

Unfortunately, his partner refused to leave her alone.

"You should tell him about that picture before he finds out himself," Leonard threatened, a smirk on his face as he walked by her side.

Alex scoffed, "That's gonna be hard for him to do seeing as I burned the damn thing."

Snart grabbed her bicep, stopping her in the middle of the hallway, "You did what?"

"He was going to find out sooner or later," Alex explained, recalling Kendra's threat when they returned from visiting her older self, "This way, he never finds out."

"And you're okay with that?"

Silence hung between the two of them and she played with her fingertips. Biting her lip, she finally forced herself to tell the truth to someone.

"No Leonard, of course I'm not okay," She snapped, unable to tell her friends anymore lies, "I want to tell Ray more than anything, but I can't." She inhaled sharply, trying to keep the pressure behind her eyes from bursting. "I can't tell anyone anything and it sucks because if I do I risk ruining the entire timeline and Ray's entire future, as well as getting my own feelings hurt, so I can't!"

She leaned her back against the wall hanging her head in frustration, Leonard's stare locked onto her.

The two of them stood in silence until Gideon instructed the Team to meet in the bridge.

"Come on Girl Scout," Leonard's voice was softer, gesturing down the hallway, "Let's go save the rest of the Team and then we can figure this out."

Alex nodded, sniffling as she straightened her back, charging down the winding path to the bridge, everyone waiting for the two of them before explaining what was going on. Mick entered the room a few seconds after them.

" ," Stein acknowledged, "How are you feeling? I mean, your younger self."

Mick shrugged, as if he couldn't care less, "Jax is watching him."

Alex smirked at the idea of Jax having to deal with a younger, more volatile Mick Rory.

"That young man, you, just lost his family," Stein continued, "You might want a shoulder to cry on."

"I don't cry, Professor." Mick deadpanned, passing Alex and Ray on his way to sit down, "Oh, Princess, Haircut, thanks for saving me."

Alex nodded at him, knowing he wasn't a fan of big thank yous or your welcomes. Ray however, looked proud to be acknowledged.

"You're welcome" He smiled, turning back to Rip, "You know what I don't get is why doesn't the Pilgrim just go back a week earlier and kill younger Rory then?"

"Cause the Omega Protocol calls for precision." Rip explained, his eyes still trained on the table before him, "Multiple attempts from the Pilgrim could do irreparable temporal damage."

"Which means she's only got one shot at killing each and every one of us." Mick groaned from his seat.

Rip nodded, and Alex placed her elbows on the desk, trying to meet Rip's eyes, "So you're saying we only have one chance to save them?"

"Exactly."

Alex sighed in frustration, Gideon interrupting their conversation, "Sir, based on the temporal wake generated by the Pilgrim's time ship, I calculate a 96% likelihood that she is heading to Starling City circa 2007."

Alex straightened up at that. That was the year the Gambit crashed. And there was only person on board that was in Star City in 2007.

"Sara," She pushed passed the rest of the Team, Rip stopping her by grabbing her shoulders.

"No, I need you to stay here," He urged, "I'll go grab Miss Lance."

Alex shook her head, "She's my friend Rip, I should be there,"

Rip placed his hands on his hips, grimacing at her words. Clearly he didn't like his decision either. "You're too emotionally invested, besides, I have a feeling Miss Lance would quite like to visit her home again"

Alex grit her teeth and stood in place, watching Rip retreat down the hall.

* * *

Ray found her in her room a few moments later. Alex was playing with the tiny extrapolator, flipping it upward in the air before catching it in her palm, her actions ceasing the moment she caught sight of Ray in the doorway.

"Hey," She smiled, placing the extrapolator in the drawer beside her bed, hopping off it, "Did Rip say anything about Sara?"

Ray nodded, his nerves catching in his throat as he moved forward, thinking about what he was going to do. "Yeah, she made it back okay,"

Alex let out a sigh of relief, tension disappearing from her shoulders, "So what's up? Do you need anything?"

Ray's hand shook, barely able to grasp the flimsy piece of paper that he had stuffed in his back pocket. The piece of paper that he'd been carrying around since Gideon had reformed it.

"I actually wanted to talk to you about something,"

Alex's smile dissipated and her arms dropped to her side. Clearly she knew something about the photograph in his hands.

Her gaze moved downward and she bit her lip. "You found out didn't you?"

Ray nodded, gesturing to the picture, "What I don't understand is why didn't you tell me?"

Alex leaned against her bedframe, her mouth open but unable to form words. His heart was pounding against his chest, the space between them cavernous, her eyes never leaving his face.

"I thought I was protecting you," She admitted, emotion thick in her voice, "The truth is I was protecting myself, and you deserved to know, but I couldn't…" She began to pick at her fingernails, unable to finish the sentence as she stared off into space.

Ray pressed through the uncomfortable silence, something tugging him toward her. He joined her in leaning against the bed, handing her the burnt half of the photo.

"Whoever he is…" Ray's voice caught in his throat, not anticipating how hard this would be for him, "He's a lucky guy."

Alex smiled, leaning her head against his shoulder, and warmth fluttered in his gut. Ray's lips twisted upward, his gaze moving to Alex's face as she stared out into space.

Swallowing his nerves, Ray summoned the courage to finally ask the question that had been plaguing his mind, "What happened to him?"

Alex was silent for a minute, and Ray had thought he had screwed up permanently by asking that. After all, he knew what it was like to lose a fiance.

"I kept secrets from him," She finally confessed, choking on her words, "And I thought I was protecting his feelings, but really I was just being selfish."

Ray's eyes drifted downward, watching as Alex chewed on her bottom lip in thought, clearly suffering from her own struggles aboard the ship. He hadn't even asked how she had been doing this entire time.

What kind of friend was he?

The kind who would rectify his mistakes, he decided.

"Alex," He began, tone serious, "What is it?"

She shook her head, clearly upset with something, "I can't," She choked out, her voice breaking, "It's not my place to tell you, I shouldn't be the one to tell you, hell I even promised Kendra I wouldn't-"  
He interrupted her rambling with a worried query, "Kendra?" Was something wrong with her? "What's the matter? Did something happen? Is she okay?"

Silence hung between them and Ray began to count to seconds.

Five...six..seven...eight...nine...ten-

"She never told you," Alex finally broke through the torturous quiet, her dark hues glassy with unshed tears, "Did she?"

Ray moved back in surprise. Kendra had told him everything. They had made that promise after dealing with Per Degaton. If something else had happened, he would've known about it.

So why was Alex acting so weird?

"Tell me what?"

Her breathing grew heavier, upset with the content of her words, upset to be betraying the promise she made to her friend. "Kendra, she and Carter-"

Ray was flung across the room, groaning in pain as his back slammed against the wall, his body landing on the floor.

"Ray!" He thought he heard Alex's voice pierce through the ringing in his ears, his head feeling like it was filled with cotton as he tried to shake it loose.

He felt his bodyweight lifted upward, his stomach twisting in pain as another phantom punch sent him reeling, coughing up blood onto the floor of the Waverider.

"Gideon!" There it was again. That same angelic voice that had called his name. Goddamn, his head hurt. More of his body weight was lifted upward as the walls of the Waverider flew past him, the person carrying him picking up speed.

His view was sideways, like his body was horizontal instead of vertical. His body ached, more phantom punches burning through his skin. His vision grew darker.

The pains stopped as a sharp object pricked his skin, worried shouts fading in and out.

The only thing he caught sight of was the curly-haired woman above him, her kind eyes imprinting themselves onto his brain, where they stayed even when everything else went dark.

"Alex," he whispered, recalling the woman who had saved him. "Alex," His lips lifted upward, a soft smile on his face as the sedative set in.

_Alex._

* * *

She kicked down the door, stepping in front of an injured Ray, facing the assassin.

"You're lucky they didn't instruct me to kill you," The Pilgrim sneered, "Too important I guess."

Alex cocked her head, widening her legs into a battle stance, "Funny, to everyone else I'm a nobody."

The Pilgrim's boots clicked against the floor, sauntering forward. "Get out of my way," She ordered.

Alex readied her sword, "Not a chance."

Right on time, a geyser of flame shot out from the hallway, straight toward the assassin. She turned to Rip, who was currently trying to convince Ray to come with him.

Alex faced the other woman again, shock lining her face as she watched her stop the flame in mid-air and throw it back at the meta-humans, sending Firestorm flying through the window.

"I won't ask again," She shot at the retreating men, her blaster only blocked by Alex's cuffs, "Get out of my way."

Alex grit her teeth, "I don't think so," With a giant clang she brought her bracelets together, catching the assassin off guard as the wave decimated everything in its path, sending the Pilgrim out the window, colliding with the ground below.

When she reached the Med-Bay Ray was drifting in and out of consciousness, and Gideon finally had some good news for her.

"Mr. Palmer's vitals are stabilizing," The AI told her and Alex wanted to cry of relief right then and there.

Alex wasted no time, she went in for a crushing hug, gripping her friend tightly. "Thank god you're okay."

Flashes of memories that weren't hers moved through her brain. A plane blowing up in the air. Soft I love yous exchanged over a watch. Her dad seeing her mom for the last time.

She squeezed the broken timepiece on her wrist.

Ray was okay.

Ray wasn't her father.

Ray was alive.

"Alex," He whispered like a prayer into her hair, nuzzling into her shoulder, "Thank you for saving me."

She pulled away, wiping a few tears that had leaked out away from her eyes, "Anytime." She chuckled, moving away to allow Kendra to reunite with her boyfriend.

"They did it." The other woman smiled, her arms crossed, kept to herself.

Ray smiled, staring at Alex before cracking a joke, "Actually, I think you get most of the credit," He directed at Kendra, "I couldn't miss spending the rest of our lives together."

Alex knew that was her cue to slip out. The moment she had been dreading was happening, and as much as she loved Ray, she couldn't stand to watch it.

"I meant it, Ray." Alex heard Kendra murmur, "I love you."

The door to the med-bay automatically shut behind her, and Alex forced herself to hold her head up high as she waited for their moment to be over.

"Miss Prince?" Gideon's voice sounded concerned, "Is everything alright?"

Alex nodded, her expression clearly indicating otherwise. The creases in her forehead were starting to make a permanent residence there, and she was already familiar with the twisting in her stomach.

"Yes, Gideon," She choked out, "Everything's fine."

Kendra walked out a few minutes later, eyes glassy and a regretful look passing over her face. She shot a glare at Alex before slowly marching away, leaving Ray alone in the Med-Bay.

Alex stuffed her hands in her back pockets as she moved forward, forcing a smile on her face as she sat on the chair by his bed.

Ray was staring out into space, his jaw clenched and face red. Soft tears were trickling down his face, and he didn't look like a man who had just found out he was going to get married.

"So when's the big day?" Alex asked, her voice flat, void of any emotion.

Ray didn't look her way. "Never. She said no."

His voice was just as flat as hers, except there was one emotion that could be heard in his deep growl. Anger. Heartbreak. Grief.

Alex reached over, ignoring the horrible butterflies in her stomach jumping for joy at the news. She grasped his hand in hers, thumb rubbing the veins lining the back of his hand.

"You were right," Ray continued solemnly, swallowing his grief, he finally turned his head to meet her gaze, "She's still in love with Carter isn't she?"

There was no hiding it this time.

She nodded.

Ray sniffled, "That's what you were going to tell me, I should've-" He cut himself off, biting his lip as he scrunched his eyebrows together in frustration. "I should've seen it sooner."

"Hey," Alex began, sitting on his hospital bed, "This is not your fault,"

Ray didn't believe a single word she was saying.

Her heart was tugging, telling her that this was her chance, that this was what she's been waiting for. But she was her mother's daughter.

She was Ray's friend.

And right now her friend was grieving, and she would not take advantage of that.

"Will you stay?" The request was soft, so quiet that she might not have heard it if she wasn't sitting so close.

Alex nodded, trying to keep her emotions tucked in a box as she moved closer to Ray, her hand never leaving his.

"Alex?" Ray whispered, his voice barely audible. Alex looked over to let him know that she heard him, Ray's face softened as he met her gaze, "Thank you."

She returned the smile, a warmth filling her chest, "Anytime."

Alex's grip never left Ray's hand, until Rip instructed them to remove their seatbelts. But she refused to leave him alone. She wouldn't leave him alone.

"We're here." Rip spoke with unease, glancing around him like they had been followed. Which they probably had.

"Where is here?" Leonard asked, continuing his earlier suspicion of the captain.

Rip turned toward the rest of the team, "Come, I'll show you."

They followed Rip out the ship, a large brown mansion towering over them. It reminded Alex of Oliver Twist, that book she had to read for her Freshman English class all those years ago.

It looked like a home.

Her boots slid against the marble floor in the foyer, bright warm light surrounding her as she pressed forward, "What is this place?"

"A safe harbor," Rip announced, something lingering in his stare as he gazed around the house, "to keep your younger selves."

As they moved into the living area, an elderly woman appeared from behind the wall, a kind smile on her face.

" I've been waiting," She moved to embrace their Captain, "It's good to see you."

Rip pulled away, a hint of a smile on his lips, "It is good to see you too, Mother."

The whiplash that Alex felt disappeared as several kids came running past them, laughter filling the room as they spilled out of the back door, Rip's mother yelling after them.

"Don't forget to take your boots off before you come back in!"

Alex smiled at the domesticity she was witnessing, Ray stopping her in her path.

"Hey," he began, and she crossed her arms, a small smile on the edge of her lips.

"Hey," She responded, "You look like you're feeling better,"

Ray's lips twisted upward, "I think so, I mean, being around children isn't much better but…"

Alex couldn't stop the chuckle from leaving her mouth, the two settling into a comfortable silence that was rudely interrupted by a hurried Rip.

"We have to go now," He urged, the pair followed Rip outside and back into the ship. When they made their way toward the bridge Rip didn't hesitate to call the rest of the team to attention.

"Everyone please report to the main deck immediately."

Sara was the first to reach the bridge, the rest of the team falling in behind her, "What's going on?"

Rip sighed and faced them, upset with the circumstances, "Gideon has intercepted a trans-chronal beacon. Gideon, show them."

With a flash the Pilgrim appeared onscreen, her expression remaining stoic.

"This message is for Rip Hunter," She began, voice monotone, void of any emotion, "I'm going to make this very quick and very simple."

The screen changed, and a series of portraits replaced her. A woman with curly hair who looked remarkably similar to Snart, Sara's father, Stein and his wife posing for a photo in the park, Ray and his fiance. A man who looked strikingly like Jax.

"If I can't find you, I can find those you love."

"Anna?" Ray whispered, the same time Jax yelled, "Dad!"

The Pilgrim looked victorious as she reappeared on the screen, "All of them will suffer and die because of you," She guilted, sneering at her words, "Your family, friends, anyone you've ever cared about. Unless you surrender your younger selves to me."

"So she can erase you all from history!" Rip yelled at his team, desperate to keep them safe, regardless of personal cost.

"If it's of any comfort, you won't feel a thing," The Pilgrim did nothing to soften the blow, "As for your loved ones, I cannot promise the same thing."

Anger bubbled inside her. How messed up do you have to be to bring people back to life and then kill them again?

"And for Alexandra Prince," She threatened, her sneer somehow growing wider, "I have a special punishment for you." Alex pressed forward until her face was in the center of the screen, jaw clenched. The Pilgrim's sneer twisted into a smirk, "I may not be able to kill you, but there's one person that I can kill,"

Alex gritted her teeth, Sara and Leonard moving forward to flank her, Ray stepping in behind her. What the fuck was her sick fascination with her?

When the figure appeared onscreen, she felt any confidence leave her. Fear paralyzed every nerve in her body and she wanted nothing more than to collapse into a ball on the floor.

It wasn't possible.

She couldn't have gotten ahold of him.

"Dad?" Her voice broke, unable to process what was happening anymore.

The young man shook his blonde head, bright blue eyes darting around to try and get a sense of his surroundings.

"That's the remarkable thing about Time Masters," The Pilgrim bragged, "Sometimes their technology is so advanced they're able to hop universes."

"Let him go!" Alex snarled, her anger flaring up at the woman. The assassin didn't show any sign of granting her request.

"You have one hour," The Pilgrim threatened, her transmission cutting off.

Suddenly it hit her, the weight crippling her as flashes of a lifetime ago flew past her. The feeling of her sword entering the chest of a man who could stop time.

The screams of a family watching as she had killed the villain she had been up against. The man who had threatened her best friends.

She remembered the dark black hair and the screams of a child, her name on the man's breath as he fell to the ground.

Alex's breathing grew shallow and the world felt like it was spinning. Her barrier broke, the hot water burning against her face as her legs turned to jello, fumbling underneath her until Sara grabbed her arm pulling her back up.  
"Hey, hey, hey," The blonde began, wiping the tears from Alex's face, "It's gonna be okay, we're going to save him."

Alex shook her head, "You don't understand," her voice broke as she collided with Sara's shoulder, "I killed her father, and now she's gonna kill mine."

"No she won't," an unexpected source of support came from Snart, "Because we're gonna stop this son of a bitch."

She turned around and nodded at him, letting him know that his support was appreciated. But she didn't believe it.

The Pilgrim had threatened her once before. Only she couldn't kill Alex. So she had to kill the people close to her.

"Leonard's right," Ray spoke up, determination filling his features, he even started to look like his old self, "You must have some kind of plan right?" He asked Rip, expecting the Captain to save them.

Rip only addressed the AI. "Gideon," His voice was stern, unflinching, "Hail the Pilgrim, please."

"What are you planning to do?" Stein interjected. Rip said nothing but faced the screen again.

"Captain Hunter." The Pilgrim sneered.

Rip wasted no time, "Look, I'm gonna make this easy."

"I already have," The bounty hunter bragged, "The lives of your team's nearest and dearest for their younger selves."

Rip clenched his jaw, and Alex watched as he mused for a bit before negotiating, "And I'm gonna counter that demand with an offer of my own," He paused, as if reconsidering what he was about to say, "I will surrender myself if you spare the lives of my crew and their loved ones."

The Pilgrim only cocked her head to the side, "A noble gesture. But worthless. My directive is to eliminate your entire team, not just you."

Rip chuckled mirthlessly, "Yes, well, I'm not talking about me now." He emphasized, and suddenly Alex was hit with a chilling realization. "I'm offering you me in the past."

"Rip don't-" Alex protested, pressing forward before his hand halted her movements.

"Rip Hunter before he became a Time Master." The Captain continued to explain, sadness tinting his tone, "Eliminate him, and this team will never have been."

The assassin seemed to consider this offer, but she was a good soldier too, asking the right questions, "If this is some kind of trick-"

"It's no trick," Rip popped the last word in his mouth, lowering his voice, "Enough people have died at my expense. Gideon will send you the location." He cut off the transmission and faced his awestruck team, parading around like he hadn't just given away his life, "And, , your wish is about to come true. You're going to meet my younger self."

She hated this plan. Not only could she not see her father until after the trade had been done, but she was certain this could get them killed if anything went wrong.

"Something on your mind girl scout?" Leonard smirked, readying his weapon, and Alex rolled her eyes.

"This plan is stupid," She stated, gripping her lasso a little bit tighter, knuckles going white.

"We'll get your dad back," Leonard reassured her, his tone turning serious. Alex met his bright blue gaze, "I promise."

She wasn't so sure about that. She knew what it was like to want revenge for the death of a family member. The guilt was eating her up again, screaming at her for taking a life all those years ago.

It had always been the Amazonian way, the warrior's way.

But it had never been her mother's way.

Her father's way.

She had failed them both. But that was too much to place on Leonard.

So she nodded and waited for Ray's signal. It came a few moments later.

"Now!" The sound of a weapon firing drew her out of the shadows, spinning her lasso so Leonard and Sara were protected as they charged forward, creating a shield for her two friends. She threw the golden rope forward in an attempt to ensnare the Pilgrim's wrist. Alex felt her movements slowed, the lasso stretching….stretching...stretching….until it finally froze.

Her dad was with Jefferson's in the corner of the room, and that was the last thing she remembers thinking before it all went blank.

The conversation was muffled, like she was hearing it through a thick wall.

"I was willing to proceed in good faith!" The Pilgrim yelled, "Now you'll watch those closest to you die!"

Movement returned to Alex for a nanosecond as the assassin faltered, and she tried to use it to her advantage, but the Pilgrim was in real-time, which meant she was faster.

The muffled voices returned.

"Thought you could snuff me out?" Child Rip's cockney accent floated upward into the ceiling, a cocksure smile on his face, "You don't know me at all, miss."

The Pilgrim screamed once again and stumbled further, releasing her grip on time, the lasso caught on her wrist, keeping her in place as weapons fired from all directions.

And when the smoke cleared, the Pilgrim was nothing more than a pile of dust.

Alex knelt down, chest constricting as she picked up a small pile of the Pilgrim's remains. "I'm sorry," She choked out, "No daughter should have to live without her father."

With a heavy sigh, she let the grains slip through her fingers, thankful that most of her memories from that time had been blocked out. She couldn't be that person again.

She wouldn't.

* * *

Alex couldn't believe it. Here he was.

Her real father.

In all of his glory. Tall and broad just like she had envisioned. He didn't know he was her father but it was close enough.

"That woman," He began, gulping down his nerves, "She said I was important to you, but I don't even know who you are."

Alex played with the amnesia pill in her hand, twisting it back and forth before meeting Steve's gaze.

"What do you remember?" She asked, trying to gauge what to tell him, "Before she took you?"

Steve looked deep in thought, biting his lip in frustration.

Alex wanted to laugh. At least she knew where she got that from.

"We had just saved a city," He began, pausing as if he couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth, "This woman, Diana, she had saved the entire city…" a soft smile floated over his face, "It was snowing, we were-I call it dancing-but she called it...swaying," His smile only grew wider, "She was…"

"Beautiful," Alex finished for him, drawing him back to the present, "I know this story," she smiled sadly, her heart leaping into her throat as she tried to find the right words to say, "My mom used to tell it to me every night when I was a kid, said it was the last memory she had of my father."

"Of your fath…" Steve trailed off, his eyes growing large as he moved forward, as if seeing her for the first time. "Your father?"

It was a question seeking an answer. Hopeful. He wanted a yes. He wanted to be a father.

She could see it behind the unshed tears, the wide smile on his face.

Steve Trevor, more than anything, wanted an affirmative answer to his question.

Alex nodded, letting the tears leak out. Steve's hands shook as he brought them to her face, cupping it in his hands, breath shaking as he exhaled.

"My daughter," He whispered into her hair as he pulled her into a tight embrace, "My beautiful baby girl."

She squeezed him tightly, knowing this would be the last time she ever saw him. "I love you," Alex cried into his shoulder. His embrace tightened.

"I love you too."

She pulled away, wiping the tears from her face as she fished the amnesia pill out of her pocket. "Now you're gonna have to take this," Her voice shook along with her hands, dropping it into his much larger palm, "It'll erase your short term memory," She lifted her eyes to meet his, "You won't remember any of this."

Steve looked pensive as he stared at the blue pill, "No matter what you do," He began, popping the pill in his mouth, "I'm proud of you. I'm proud to call you my daughter."

He followed the rest of them out of the ship, Gideon sending them back to their own times.

She had met her father.

He had told her he was proud of her.

He was proud to have her as a daughter.

That alone brought a smile to her face. She couldn't bring herself to worry, even when Rip had mentioned that they were headed to 2166.

It kept her up that night and when her stomach growled, she figured she may as well make breakfast for herself even if it was only three in the morning.

Turns out, she wasn't the only one who was having an awful time falling asleep.

Ray sat at the table, turning the engagement ring in his hands, a solemn look on his face.

"Hey," She drew his attention toward her, letting him know he wasn't alone, "You look like you could use some cheering up."

Ray sighed, tossing the ring across the table, "My first fiancee died because of a mistake I made, my second girlfriend left me for another man, and now my current ex is doing the same thing." He turned to face Alex, who was cooking up some scrambled eggs on the stove, "Is there something wrong with me?"

An involuntary laugh passed her lips, "Are you kidding?" Alex turned to face Ray, an incredulous look on her face, "You're the sweetest guy I've ever met and probably will ever meet, no there's nothing wrong with you,"

Ray bit the inside of his cheek as he stood up, shoving his hands in his pockets, "So why do people keep leaving? Why does everyone I love leave?"

A pensive look crossed her face as she stared at the floor. She had asked herself that same question so many times.

Over and over again until she had gone crazy with wondering.

But there was no answer. There was no reason.

"People just...leave," Alex mused, meeting Ray's solemn look, "There's not always a reason."

Ray nodded, peering over her shoulder to stare at the scrambled eggs she had been making. Unfortunately, the smell of burning food was arising from behind her, and she rushed to turn the oven off, cursing under her breath as she threw the eggs away, upset with herself for screwing up the very first dish she had ever learned.

She closed her eyes and let out a groan of embarrassment.

"Try again?" Ray quipped, a smile appearing on his face. Alex chuckled and nodded, letting him take the reins.

"So what was the big deal with you and the Time Assassin?" Ray asked. It was so casual, like they were discussing the weather.

Alex hesitated, holding the mug of hot tea near her lips but not taking a sip.

"Unless you don't wanna talk about it, which I totally-"

"No I do," She cut him off, "It's just...I blocked out that part of my life for such a long time, I don't- I don't think I remember much of it anymore."

Her face turned pensive, staring out into space. "I think- I think I was alone, my only friends were these two guys I had met in a bar," She shared a chuckle with Ray at the thought, "I had bonded with them because we had all decided to sing Super Trooper at the karaoke contest," The chuckle turned into full-blown laughter, filling the kitchen when Ray decided to join in.

"Sound like a couple of stand up guys," He joked, handing her the plate of food he had just cooked. She dug in, happy to be eating food that wasn't fabricated or that she had made.

Ray's cooking had been one of the best parts of being stranded. She had missed it.

"They weren't that bad," Alex defended, her expression turning solemn as she recalled what had happened to drive them apart, "But something happened, I don't remember what, or if I do, I blocked it out because it hurt too much, and I think...I think that just set me off. Enter the Pilgrim's dad."

Ray nodded, his gaze never leaving the woman standing across from him. "I wanted to do the same thing," He announced, "After Anna died, I just...wanted to forget everything. To block it out." He smiled, like he was recalling a fond memory, "But I couldn't. There was too much of her to love."

Alex smiled with him, "Must have been nice seeing her today,"

Ray nodded, "It was, With everything that's happened, it's just put everything in perspective," Alex watched as he stared out into the distance, the solemn look returning, "I may not be over Kendra but not marrying her, getting rejected, it was a good thing."

Alex placed her dish in the sink, her hand rubbing Ray's shoulder in comfort, "You will get over her Ray, I know you will," She sounded so confident, but she knew how hard it was to let go of someone you loved, "And then you'll find the real Mrs. Palmer, and she'll see just how special you really are."

His eyebrows creased, eyes fluttering down to the bottom half of her face, taking his hand in hers. His breath seemed to hitch, and Alex caught hers. "Alex…"

There it was again. Whispering her name like a prayer.

The space between them was growing smaller, and she knew if she didn't leave now they'd both do something they'd regret.

"I uh, I should try to get some sleep," She tore her hand from his, breaking them out of the trance.

Ray shook his head, like he was exiting a dream, "Me uh, Me too" he murmured. She walked toward the door of the kitchen, sending another smile his direction before turning on her heels and making her way back to her room.


	20. Leviathan

The ship shook, sending sparks flying from the wiring. Alex's knuckles were white from gripping her seat, Ray's eyes closed as Gideon maneuvered the Waverider through the fire.

They lurched forward, the metal seatbelt digging into her collarbone.

"We're gonna need to find a safe place to set down, Gideon!" Rip called to the AI, rubbing his temple.

"I don't believe there are any safe places, Captain," Gideon announced, apprehension in her voice.

Alex tightened her grip again and yelled over the commotion, "Are we over London yet?!"

"What's left of it." Rip called back, the ship shifting violently to the left.

Jax was the next to speak up, "Why's London shooting at us?"

Alex groaned in pain as the Waverider shifted again, this time to the right to avoid the bright laser fire headed their way.

"It's Savage's forces that are doing the shooting," Rip explained, "Here in 2166, they've subjugated most of the globe."

"Great," Alex muttered under her breath, turning toward Ray. She intertwined her fingers with his and closed her eyes, listening to the bickering between her teammates.

"Maybe picking up here wasn't the brightest idea." Sara's voice entered the conversation, Alex had to agree.

"Unfortunately, we no longer have the luxury of blindly searching for Savage throughout history!" Stein reported, and Alex found herself worried for the old man. What if he never made it back home? He hadn't even said a proper goodbye to his wife. Alex's eyes shot open again, sending a sympathetic smile toward the professor, which he returned with a tight-lipped one.

Rip was next to speak, "Indeed; we have to target Savage at the time and place that we're certain he will be, which is-"

"Right before he wastes your family," Mick cut the Captain off before meeting the disgusted eyes of his teammates, "What?"

"Not the time Mick," Alex scolded, the pyro rolling his eyes at her response.

Rip's shoulder's tensed, and he stared out into the artillery filled sky, "Yes, , Savage will kill my wife and son in three days' time, but we can save them and the world by stopping Savage now."

More explosions rattled the hull of the ship before ceasing, a peace settling over them as Gideon's voice rang over the intercom.

"Captain, I've managed to slip beneath their artillery fire." The AI informed them. Alex leaned her head against the back of her chair, sighing in relief.

Rip removed his seatbelt, his duster swishing around his heels, "Set us down on the outskirts of the city, Gideon," He ordered, "Near the encampment of the remaining resistance forces"

Alex removed her seatbelt as well, preparing herself for Rip's next orders. Before she could ask, Stein cut her off.

"I realize your family is in jeopardy, but perhaps some deliberation-"

"We really don't have the time, Martin!" Rip raised his voice, catching the entire team off guard,  
"According to Gideon, Savage is going to be out in the open tonight vulnerable. Now, in order to capture him, I require the services of-"

"A killer, klepto, pyro, and bringer of justice?" Mick smirked sarcastically, turning around to face Alex. She rolled her eyes, already knowing the answer based on the look in Rip's eyes.

"Bingo."

* * *

Savage's speech was all too reminiscent of another dictator Alex had encountered in her lifetime, and she didn't like it one bit.

"There's no way we can grab him here," Sara whispered in her ear, and Alex nodded.

"He's too well guarded,"

Leonard leaned in, "Especially with an army standing between us."

"Shh," Mick cut them off, his face written with annoyance, "I'm trying to listen to this guy. He gives a hell of a speech."

Alex shook her head, staring forward at the man they were supposed to apprehend, "So did Hitler."

Victory cries rallied around her, her stomach churning at the blind loyalty surrounding her. It made her sick.

"Present arms!" Savage called, ordering his army, "Quick time. Move!"

Kendra's voice rang in her ear, a shot of irritation rushing through Alex's veins as she spoke, "All set on our end. Jax is in the Jumpship, ready to extract you guys."

Alex tightened her grip on the gun.

"Especially if-" Leonard interjected, "and by-if, I mean when-this thing goes south."

A blonde woman caught her gaze, her thick lips curling upward into a familiar smirk, Leonard shifting beside her.

"Savage's lady friend just made us." Leonard drawled, sharing a worried look with Alex.

"And she doesn't look happy about it either," She announced, but Rip seemed unfazed.

"Have faith, " He urged, the first group of soldiers following after Savage.

Alex followed behind Rip and Sara, keeping in perfect time with the rest of the soldiers as they followed Savage and the blonde beside him.

They followed him through the building, their steps bringing them closer to justice, Mick and Leonard a few feet ahead of her.

"If we don't move real soon, we could get ourselves killed," Mick muttered into Leonard's ear, Alex hearing every word as she trailed the two.

Leonard leaned in, "How about we play this like Chicago?"

"Could work."

Alex rushed forward, risking her cover to try to keep the two rogues from going…well, rogue.

"You two have something you wanna share with the class?" She poked, hoping to get a sense of their plan before it all went south.

Leonard sent her a smirk as he walked backward, pulling her behind a pillar, "Just let us do our thing Girl Scout."

Mick stuck his foot out, sending Rip collapsing to the floor and alerting the rest of Savage's guards to their presence, Sara joining them behind the pillars.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Sara whisper yelled, her question going unanswered as the guards began to fire at them, Rip finally firing back.

The sound of the cold gun charging as Leonard began to throw around orders.

"We'll take Savage," He announced confidently, "You tie up the guards."

Sara and Alex shared a look of exhaustion before jumping out, the brunette unleashing the retractable sword she carried around with her.

It clanged against Savage's lieutenant's swords, and she found herself barely able to block the onslaught of blows. She was grateful for Sara, together the two of them would be able to catch the other woman off guard, but when she saw the blonde sweep her foot underneath Sara, she paused.

Someone had taught her Amazonian combat.

Alex clenched her jaw, accelerating her blows as Sara recovered from the blow, Kendra's voice was an unwelcome distraction, and only served to make Alex angrier.

"Sara, the woman you're fighting you need to take her bracelet."

Alex rolled her eyes inwardly as she blocked another blow from the woman, using her strength to push the blonde back against the pillar, Sara saying what she was thinking.

"Are you seriously jewelry shopping right now?"

Savage's blonde guard swept her sword horizontally, and Alex tucked her arms in as she flipped to the side, her foot colliding with her assailant's stomach, sending the woman to the ground.

She picked herself back up and continued her assault, Sara's staff slapping the blonde's cheekbones, where Leonard was waiting with his cold gun.

"Fall back!" Rip called, and the team did as they were told.

Leonard hesitated, eventually letting the charge die and freeing the blonde woman.

Alex scoffed as the jumpship picked them up. "Never could resist a pretty face could you?"

Leonard smirked knowingly and she shook her head.

This was going to be harder than she anticipated.

* * *

The punching bag moved inch by inch, signaling that she was back in control of her strength, not that it helped.

She landed another kick, the synthetic material smashing against her bare skin, the sensation cooling her down from her general frustration.

First, Leonard and Mick had gone out on their own. Then, Kendra had decided to stick her nose in the fight, distracting her and Sara, and to top it all off, Savage had apparently trained the woman she was fighting in the Amazon fight style.

That had been her ace in the hole. Her surprise.

It was such a lost art form nobody knew how to defend against it. It was their best-kept secret and Savage had somehow gotten his hands on an instruction manual.

Her strikes accelerated, and when she flipped into a roundhouse kick, her foot sent the punching bag flying.

Sweat dripped down her back, the sports bra doing little to cool her down from the heat of training. The towel provided some relief, but not much, and the sound of the door opening made her sigh in frustration.

She turned around, facing Leonard's perceptive gaze. Guzzling down what was left in her water bottle, she faced the rogue.

"What do you want Leonard?" She panted, her ponytail swinging against the nape of her neck, curls bouncing around her face.

Snart pressed forward, joining her on the bench. "I came to tell you that Rip wants you to accompany him and Raymond at the refugee camp," He informed her, clutching his hands together, "And I came to see how you were doing."

Alex scoffed, downing more water and wishing it was alcohol. "I just want this to be over," She sighed, using the towel to wipe the sweat from her brow. "I'm tired of chasing after Savage over and over again only for him to be just out of reach," She stood up, biting her lip and crossing her arms, "And now he has a woman trained in my move set on his team, and that makes it-" She drew her fists together, fingernails digging into her palms in frustration, "That much harder to get to him."

A thoughtful look passed over Leonard's face before he stood up. For a second Alex thought he was going to hug her, but she knew better. Instead, he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, his silence saying everything she needed to hear.

"Be careful," She breathed out, recalling his own mission, "That blonde bitch is a beast,"

Snart smirked at her words, "Don't worry, I've got my own way of dealing with her."

Alex chuckled softly and watched him exit the room before throwing on her shirt and following him out of the training room.

She met the rest of her teammates in full armor outside the Waverider.

Jax and Stein were apparently coming on this mission too, not that Leonard had told her.

"Thank you, gentlemen and Lady, for accompanying me on this excursion." Rip responded gratefully, the five of them moving forward toward the refugee camp.

It was feeling all too familiar to her first time experiencing the world of man as a newly trained warrior.

1944, the thousands of refugees she and her mother had encountered on the outskirts of London, no one to care for them.

"Oh, no problem," Jax began sarcastically, "I just love hiking through the woods in the middle of World War III."

Alex didn't chuckle at his words. Because this was exactly what war looked like. Only Savage was fighting with lasers and photons instead of guns and tanks.

Goosebumps erupted across her skin as she recalled the thousands of dead bodies scattered about the camps they had raided, their pale bodies shoved into ditches like they weren't even human.

To the Germans, they weren't.

She swallowed her memories and focused on the war before her. It was the last place she wanted to be, but it was where she was needed.

"What if, instead of encountering these resistance fighters," Stein began, trying to think strategically, "we meet up with more of Savage's forces?"

"That's what we're for," Alex responded, no hint of a smile or humor on her lips as she said it.

Rip nodded, his response cut off by several people yelling in their direction and surrounding them.

Knowing they were outnumbered, Alex brought her hands up behind her head.

A woman approached them, removing her mask and brandishing her gun at the newcomers, "Give me one good reason why we shouldn't blow you straight to hell." She growled.

Rip pressed forward, his face solemn as he gave their excuse, "My wife and son live in Whitechapel."

The leader dropped her gun, a sympathetic look crossing her face at the news, "It was hit hard."

"I know," Rip nodded, "The same fate will befall you if you don't accept our help."

The leader brought her gun back up to the face the group of Legends, "How do we know you're not with Savage?"

Alex had to give her credit. She was smart not to trust them.

"Because if we were, you'd be dead right now," Rip deadpanned, moving forward again, guns cocking at his steps, "Look, feel free to shoot us, but from the looks of it, you could use all the allies you can get."

The leader nodded at her fighters, signaling for them to drop their weapons and let the group in. Alex let out a sigh of relief and followed the resistance toward their camp, a lump forming in her throat as she caught sight of the refugees.

Their belongings were few, and what they did own was scattered about in small pockets, a poor attempt to claim some sense of home in the large group of people.

Trash can fires were lit every few tents, children and elderly huddled around them trying to get warm.

Most of them were covered in ash and blood, trailing down their faces, eyes rimmed with purple and red before quickly flitting their stare away from the newcomers.

The tents were made out of blankets that had been poorly sewn together and then placed over a pole before being nailed to the ground. There weren't enough for the number of people Alex had encountered, several women and men sleeping outside in the freezing weather so their kids could have the luxury of the tent.

Coughs erupted around her. Sickness seemed to be rampant in the camp, and she drew her cloak closer to her, feeling horrible as she did so.

She was here to help them not avoid them. But the sight made her want to gag, and she could already feel her stomach turning over.

"Whitechapel fell 11 days ago," The Leader announced solemnly, "We have a lot of refugees. You think your wife and son are among them?"

Rip's response pulled Alex out of her stupor, "Sadly, I'm confident that they're not," He swallowed his grief and pressed on, "Still, we would like to help in whatever way we can."

The Leader nodded, showing them to an unused trash can fire, "Very well, get yourselves acclimated, and I'll rejoin you shortly."

She disappeared and Alex warmed her hands by the fire, ignoring the sick feeling in her stomach or the coal sized lump forming in her throat.

She was back at war. Exactly where she didn't want to be ever again.

"All right, what are you all playing at?" The resistance leader had left her tent, anger ablaze in her eyes, "I retina-scanned the four of you. There's no record of you anywhere," She pointed at Rip, "and you and your friends disappeared 150 years ago." She then turned to Alex, "May I just say, It's an honor Miss Prince, but I don't think any of us were expecting Wonder Woman to live an extra 150 years."

Alex shook her head, "I'm sorry, I think you may have me confused with someone else,"

Before she could get any more answers, Rip cut her off, "Believe me when I tell you it would take about that much time for us to tell the whole story. But the most important thing is that we get as close to Vandal Savage as possible."

The Leader sighed, placing her hands on her hips, "No one gets close to Savage, especially not now. Some idiots made an attempt on his life earlier tonight," Alex and Rip shared a look at that news, both regretting that decision, "He's gone to ground in the citadel's bunker and he's holed up good and tight."

Alex crossed her arms, "So we draw him out,"

Before the leader could object, her radio went off, a distress call coming in, "Delta Camp is under attack. Taking heavy fire. We need air support."

The hike to Delta camp took less time than she expected, but it didn't make the site less horrifying. Thousands of bodies lay strewn about the ground, skulls crushed into the dirt.

Impact craters littered the camp and the faint smell of gunpowder lingered in her nose.

"There were no survivors from the attack." Ray murmured, horrified by what he was seeing. Alex couldn't blame him.

"No," Rip agreed solemnly, "whatever weapon Savage used against the rebels was quite effective."

Ray turned to her, a renewed sense of hope in his gaze, "Maybe Professor Stein and I should survey the wreckage, analyze some soil samples, determine what kind of weaponry Savage is using," He announced, "Alex you should help too, you might know something we don't, Until we figure out a way to thwart his firepower, the rebels are as good as dead."

"They already are," Alex responded, unable to tear her gaze away from the scattered bodies before her.

* * *

The door to the brig swished open, her steps the only sound either of them heard.

"So, you finally came to see me," Cassandra Savage smirked, her face exactly like her father's.

Alex crossed her arms, tilting her head to try and see what was so special about the woman before her.

"I had to Savage's daughter," Alex shot back, "See what scum the bastard was able to reproduce."

Her smirk disappeared, jaw clenching at her words. "My father-"

"Taught you how to fight like an Amazon," Alex finished, smirking at the caged blonde, "Smart of him, teach you my move set, a way to cover all his bases,"

Cassandra's smirk reappeared, raising her chin haughtily. Silence hung between the two women before Alex moved forward.

"I know what you're going through," She finally decided to play her card, "Dead parent, the other forcing you to become a warrior in order to protect yourself, that was my whole life." Alex sighed, never letting her gaze waver, "But it doesn't have to be yours."

Something shifted behind the blonde's blue-eyed gaze, Cassandra staring down at the floor as she contemplated Alex's words.

The Amazon had planted the seed. Now Leonard would do the rest. She was almost out the door when Cassandra stopped her.

"He named me for you," She announced, bitterness staining her voice, "My father named me Cassandra because he wanted me to be the greek warrior you were, and when I wasn't…" She trailed off, gulping quietly, "My Mother's name was Alexandra, and since he couldn't name me that, he chose the next best thing."

Alex resisted the urge to smile. She already resented Savage, the pieces were all there. It was that blind loyalty that had been instilled in her that was keeping her from changing.

"I hated you for so long," Cassandra admitted, anger rumbling in her throat, "And I won't change just because we share the same sob story,"

Alex said nothing but let her stew, the door swishing shut behind her.

* * *

"Savage's superweapon isn't an explosive!" Ray announced excitedly, stirring Alex from her nap. She lifted her head off the book she had been examining, trying to keep herself awake as Ray and the Professor traded theories.

"The exact conclusion I've just come to after examining soil samples from the attack site" Stein agreed in a similar eureka moment, "How did you determine it?"

Ray smiled, pointing upward, "Gideon-she found a defunct spy satellite," He swiped upward on the tablet, projecting the satellite photos on the computer, "Look at the photos here. This is the camp." He swiped to the right, "And here is the camp, destroyed. Look at the impact craters. Sort of squint your eyes. What do they look like?"

Alex stood up, joining Ray and Stein in examining the craters.

"Are you sure those are craters?" She asked, squinting her eyes, "They look like-"

"Oh, my God," Stein cut her theory off, eyes growing big, "Those are not impact craters,"

Ray zoomed in on the picture, his smile never leaving his face as he turned toward his research partners, "They're footprints,"

At the sound of that, a rumbling stirred the ground beneath them, shaking the bottle of whiskey one of the end tables.

It hit her in the chest, shaking her body as her pulse began to race. Wasting no time, she grabbed her jacket and ran.

The refugees wouldn't know what was coming. They needed a safe haven. And the only safe haven nearby was the Waverider.

Silently, she sent a prayer up to the gods that she would get there in time.

Alex was helping the final refugees board the ship when the ground shook a little bit harder, the door closing behind the last family boarding.

She rushed to the bridge, the ship taking off as she ran down the hallway, colliding with Ray as he was headed the same direction.

"What's going on?" She asked, holding onto his arms for safety. Ray's grip tightened around her shoulders and he shook his head.

"Savage sent his giant robot after us,"

They entered the bridge just in time to see a bright glowing ATOM suit five times the size of the Empire State building enter the Waverider's vision.

"Holy shit," Alex murmured.

Sara's mouth fell open, "That's-"

"Incredible." Ray finished, a wide smile on his face. The ship turned to the side, evading the robot's grasp, and Alex held onto the table for support.

"Fire!" Rip ordered, "Now!"

The ship's weapons did little against the giant before them, and the sound of metal clanking against metal rang through the ship.

The hull was groaning in pain as more sparks flew from the wiring.

"Hold on to something!"

Alex's grip switched to one of the support beams of Rip's office, Sara grasping the other one.

More metal clanking was heard, and a boom came from the hallway.

"Now might be a good time to start praying." Rip spoke ominously, gripping his Captain's seat.

With terrifying force, the ship was hurled through the air like a discus, a scream leaving Alex's mouth as they entered free fall, part of the beam coming loose as they crashed, her head slamming the metal ground.

"Alex!" Ray's voice was like thick cotton in her ears, breaking through the ringing. She pushed herself upward, her body feeling like it was moving through a bowl of molasses. Her vision cleared enough to catch sight of Ray helping her up. She shook her head, hoping the ringing would go away soon.

She stumbled slightly, leaning on Ray for support before regaining her balance again.

"Gideon, what's our status?" Rip asked defeated.

"I'm gonna go with "lousy." Sara piped up and Alex had to agree.

When she tried to talk, the only thing that filled her mouth was bile, and she choked it back down.

"Hey, hey," Ray soothed, slipping his arms underneath hers to support her, "We have to get you to the med bay,"

Rip nodded, and the two headed out, slowly trotting down the hallway. Alex leaned into Ray's arms, relishing in the warmth they provided. Her vision was finally beginning to clear up and she could see the med bay in its entirety when he placed her in one of the chairs.

"Gideon, run a full body scan please," Ray almost sounded worried, his foot tapping against the floor.

Alex wanted to chuckle. How many times had they done this? Been in the med bay when one of them had been injured? It was beginning to seem like a routine.

"Miss Prince seems to have a grade one concussion, her symptoms should disappear in five to ten minutes," Gideon informed them, and Alex grasped her head in pain, the ache starting to settle in.

"You okay?" Ray asked, creasing his brows in concern. Alex nodded.

"I will be once I have some aspirin," She joked, trying to diffuse the tension. Ray chuckled along with her, pulling out a Ziploc bag from his bag, handing her a couple of the white tablets.

Alex lifted her brows in surprise, "So what? You just carry pain killers with you?"

Ray's small laugh made her heart flutter, "After the Pilgrim, I decided not to take any chances, besides my back still hurts."

Alex popped the pills, swallowing them dry, the ache subsiding. "My hero," She joked. Their moment was interrupted by a wounded Stein being carried into the med bay, a piece of shrapnel stuck in his abdomen.

"What happened?" Alex's tone turned frantic, jumping up from her position on the seat. Rip turned to the two of them, "Professor Stein was injured during the crash, I need you two to go check on the civilians,"

Alex and Ray nodded, leaving the med bay to check on the refugees they had brought aboard, Jax following close behind them.

Making sure all of the refugees were comfortable took less time than they thought, and both she and Ray had the same idea.

They had to seek out Rip.

They found him in the captain's cabin, slowly drinking himself to death.

Alex leaned against the pillar she had grabbed for support earlier, crossing her arms disapprovingly.

"How are repairs coming?" Ray asked, a hopeful gaze on his face. Even in the darkest times, Ray Palmer was always the optimist.

"They're not," Alex interjected, "Are they?"

Rip shook his head, "Not in 30 minutes, which is about as much time as we have." He stood up, swaying as he brought the bottle of scotch down on the table, "We brought all those people on board, and all we've bought them is an extra few minutes to live in fear."

"Well, I guess the question is," Ray continued, "What do we do with those minutes?

"The ship is crippled!" Rip yelled, his voice growing hoarse, "Everyone aboard is as dead as my-"

"Family," Alex cut him off, catching the sorrowful look in his eye. She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to keep her own tears from pouring forth. She was probably never going to see her family again, never going to see her friends again, but that wouldn't stop her from trying.

"I overheard your guys' conversation," She admitted, recalling how Rip was adamant that the universe didn't want his family to live. "Fate isn't a straight line Rip, it's bullshit my ancestors made with a loom because they didn't like that the gods were in control." She tore into him, "Fate is a construct we've built because it's easier to give up than to keep fighting, you say the universe wants your family dead, but I don't think that's true."

"I don't believe in fate." Ray announced from her side, trying to comfort their broken captain, "I believe in choices. And we can choose-we can choose to fight, even if the fight may be futile." He met Alex's eyes as he said that, a soft smile tugging on his lips, "We can save your family, Rip," He turned back around to face their Captain, "It's not impossible. All we have to do-"

"Is kill Vandal Savage," Rip spoke, defeat still lacing his voice, "the chances of which appear to be fading."

"Not anymore," Kendra announced, causing Alex and Ray to straighten up at the sight of her. Awkwardness filled the cavernous space between the couple and the demi-goddess, letting her explain her plan, "I figured out how to do it."

Leonard leaned against the other pillar, "And my new bestie and I can get us in."

Alex rolled her eyes at the idea of Leonard Snart and Cassandra Savage actually being so-called 'besties'.

A smile crept across Ray's face, his eyes lighting up, "And I think I've got a way to stop the giant robot that's coming to kill us."

* * *

She ran into him on her way to the exit of the Waverider, the two caught each other off guard as they bumped into each other.

"Oh my god," She responded involuntarily, the same time Ray went to apologize.

Alex chuckled softly, "You don't have to be sorry, I wasn't-I wasn't looking where I was going."

Ray laughed with her, the two settling into a gradual silence before Alex broke it.

Her breath hitched, moving closer to the scientist, staring at her hands. She couldn't look at him as she said this. She would cry if she did.

"Ray-"

He pulled her in for an embrace, hand cradling her head as she tightened her arms around his torso.

"Don't-" he whispered into her hair, his breath tickling her ear, the heat turning her skin red, "Don't you dare say goodbye, not now."

Alex squeezed her eyes shut, letting a few tears slide down her scrunched cheeks, "I won't," She whispered back. They pulled away, both wearing the same glassy expression.

"I just-" Her voice caught in her throat, unable to say anything more. "Promise you'll come back to me."

"Alex-"

"Promise me please," She grasped his hand in hers, Ray's gaze dropping at the gesture, fixated on their intertwined hands, "I can't-I can't lose anyone else," Her voice broke, the high pitch sounding like a scared child, "Please Ray, promise you'll come back."

His other hand reached up, brushing a stray curl behind her ear, thumb pressed against her cheek, brushing the skin back and forth, his eyes fixed on hers.

"I promise."

She let out a sigh of relief, pressing her lips against his cheek and pulling him in for one final embrace before they left for their respective missions.

Alex looked over her shoulder one last time, watching Ray disappear down the hallway, never looking back. Her throat constricted, heart pounding as she prayed to the gods that he survived.

* * *

Alex was practically hugging the wall as they waited for Cassandra's cue one when to reveal themselves. Sara was beside her, clearly not that happy about this plan either and that was the only reassurance Alex needed to get through this.

She couldn't stop thinking of Ray. If he was okay. If he had survived the Leviathan attack.

_He promised he'd come back_ she told herself, _you can't do anything else but wait._

"Call them" She heard Savage growl, "Call the ones that you no doubt helped gain access to my bunker."

Rip and Leonard were the first ones to reveal themselves, "No need to trouble yourself, Miss Savage. We're already here."

Alex and Sara knew this was their moment to join in as well, and they did so in full armor, Mick prepping his heat gun as he met Rip in the middle.

"Oh, I admire your command of irony, Gareeb." Savage smiled slyly, "Using my own child against me."

Leonard cut off Rip's response, "Sorry to say it didn't take much."

"None at all, you ass." Mick quipped.

Cassandra clenched her jaw, anger ablaze in her eyes, as she moved to join the Legends, "They showed me the truth of what you've done. The innocent-"

"Do not speak as if you know anything about ruling a people!" Vandal yelled, cutting her off like a true father, chastising her with every word, "Do you really want to align your fate with these...pretenders? They're nothing but grains of sand in the desert of time."

Alex drew her sword and shield, godkiller feeling perfectly balanced in her hands as she twirled her wrist, ready to fight off whatever forces Savage brought.

Cassandra pressed forward, words dripping with hatred, "You are a monster."

Vandal's eyes were wet, face creased in pain as he stared at his only daughter, now the person who had betrayed him. The expression melted away and he stood up, like he was hearing some call that no one else could hear, "She's here," He murmured, his sneer taking up all the space on his face, "I can sense her. You do realize that she can do me no harm?"

Mick charged his gun, "Clearly, you didn't get the memo."

The glass of the bunker broke, Kendra swooping down and grabbing Savage by the collar, throwing him into another room.

Alex pushed forward, slicing the legs of one of the soldiers and sending a sweeping kick under the other. She spun around, shield colliding with another guard's face.

Her bracelets bounced the blaster fire back at them, putting several of them out of commission as she moved to cut through another man's gun.

"Alex!" She heard Rip call. She ceased her movements, her shield blocking the blows as she caught the Time Master's gaze. He gestured toward the room Kendra had thrown Savage into. She nodded and used her strength to push the soldier back, her shield sending the man flying into the wall as she slid underneath the firing lasers, sword slicing the arm of the man closest to the room, his wails ringing in her ears as she joined Rip.

They arrived just in time, Kendra was towering over Savage, one hand threatening to choke him, the other wielding the coated mace.

"Kendra, what are you waiting for?" Rip asked what Alex was thinking, "Finish him!"

Savage said something that she couldn't make out, but was clearly gesturing to the unconscious body on the floor. Alex drew her attention to where he was pointing and froze, leaning down to inspect the face of the soldier.

"It's Carter," Alex murmured, and Rip turned at the news.

Alex caught sight of a red beeping on his belt, and scrambled up, checking to see if the silent alarm had been heard.

It had.

She moved back into the room, eyes wide, "reinforcements are coming." She urged, sending a look at Kendra.

Did she have what it takes? Was Kendra a killer?

The woman was torn, anguish creasing her face, but for Alex the choice was clear.

"If I kill Savage, his mind will be lost." Kendra sobbed, her voice cracking at the thought of losing Carter again.

"And if you don't," Rip began, his tone urgent, "I will lose my wife and son."

Alex moved forward, placing her hand on Kendra's shoulder, hoping her words would help, "Kendra, one more blow and this is all over," She promised, hoping the woman would understand, "We can take Carter back with us, rehabilitate him ourselves,"

Something crossed Kendra's eyes, and Alex's chest constricted. It wasn't looking good.

"This is what we came here to do!" Alex urged, her tone turning frantic, "You can end this and still save Carter, I promise."

"She lies," Savage choked out, "I am-the only one- who can save him."

Kendra's breathing grew heavier, clearly torn between her teammate and the man who was manipulating her.

"Well, my love, what's it gonna be, huh?" Savage taunted, a sly smile on his face, "Come on!"

Kendra screamed in anguish and backed away, dropping the mace to the floor, "I can't," She sobbed, looking past Alex toward their Captain, "I'm so sorry, Rip. I can't."

That was it then. They had finally lost.


	21. River of Time

Alex stormed into the office, her lips turned down into a frown, creasing the smooth skin around her mouth, plopping next to Mick.

He uncapped the glass decanter, swallowing the dark liquid before handing it to Alex, "Mission... almost accomplished."

"That bottle of Scotch was given to me by Rob Roy MacGregor in 1689." Rip protested, trying to swipe the decanter from her hands. Alex rolled her eyes and held it closer to her, taking a swig, making a face as she handed it back to Rory, the alcohol burning a hole in her throat but doing little else.

She couldn't even drink to forget about this day.

"We should be toasting to Savage's death." Sara scoffed, and Alex leaned against the table, nodding with her.

"Agreed,"

"Apart from celebrating murder," Stein interrupted, ever the moral compass, "Savage still has Carter brainwashed."

Leonard moved around, flanking Alex's other side, a smirk written across his face, "I don't know if you've been paying attention, Professor, but murdering Savage was always the plan."

Alex nodded, "Besides, Carter reincarnates," She struggled to contain the anger surging beneath her, threatening to boil over, "We should've killed Savage."

"As long as he's onboard and breathing," Leonard agreed, "Savage is a threat to everyone on this ship."

"So what, we just kill Savage and leave Carter a brainless drone?" Kendra's voice was grating, screeching in Alex's ears as her pulse began to race, hands clenching into fists at the ultimatum.

"Yes." She and Mick spoke at the same time.

Alex pressed herself upward, the anger moving from her gut to her chest, bubbling and boiling until it threatened to explode. "This isn't your Carter Kendra, this is Savage's guard and he will kill us,"

"You don't know that!" Kendra protested. Alex moved forward, getting in Kendra's face, trying to make the woman understand.

"Yes, I do!" Alex raised her voice, trying to keep herself from attacking the woman. Her hands began to shake, sweat forming on her brow, trickling down her neck as her body began to overheat, "The Carter you know is dead and gone, and nothing, not even Savage can bring him back! You wanted to be reunited with him?" She inhaled deeply, chest heaving, her next words catching everyone off guard as they spilled out of her mouth, "Then you should've died with him"

Kendra's mouth grew tight. Leonard's hands found themselves on her shoulders, gently pulling her away, "Alright, let's focus on the real problem here-"

Alex never tore her eyes from Kendra's, a fire burning in both of their gazes, playing chicken with each other. Neither of them wanted to be the first one to move.

"Sorry we're late," Ray's miraculous ability to disperse any tension in the room was incredibly welcome, and Alex finally turned away to see him and Jax enter the bridge, "but we found something."

As the boys talked science and terms she didn't understand, Alex faced Leonard, his chiding gaze reminding her that they were all unhappy with how things turned out. She clenched her jaw and tore herself out of his grip, joining Rory in drinking her sorrows away.

The alcohol scorched her throat again, and she finally rejoined the conversation when they were speaking words she understood.

"Well, that's the thing. It's not." Jax continued, and Alex searched the conversation for any clues as to what they could be talking about, "This technology's light years more advanced than anything from 2166."

"Who cares?" She spoke flatly, taking another swig from the decanter. Ray's eyes narrowed at her behavior, and before he could move, Rip pulled them back to attention.

"The Time Masters. They refused to take action against Savage because he didn't pose a threat to the timeline." Their Captain had a giddy look on his face, like he had just found presents under the tree.

Stein finished his thought for him, "But if he comes into possession of future technology…"

"It means he's been engaging in exactly the same manipulation of time that the Time Council were designed to prevent." Rip clapped his hands together, his smile growing wider.

"So now they'll finally sign off on undoing all the damage Savage has done to the world." Even Sara looked hopeful, but all Alex felt was empty.

Thankfully Mick was in the same boat as her, "Last time I checked, the Time Council was at the edge of the timeline, and this bucket of bolts can barely hold it together as it is."

"Gideon, what's the status of the Time Drive?"

The AI chirped cheerily, like the team wasn't already falling apart, "Stable, Captain. Plot a course for the Vanishing Point."

Rip tore the decanter from Alex's hand, taking a large sip himself, "Tonight, Vandal Savage faces justice for his crimes."

* * *

"_I always knew you'd end up being the baddest bitch in town," _

_Alex smiled at the voice, her hair whipping around her face as she turned to face the intruder, "turns out that includes space and time too" _

_Alex smirked, her teeth poking through slightly, "And here I was thinking that the great Fitz Chandler wouldn't see me off," She joked, standing up from her desk to embrace the man, squeezing him tightly, her hands cupping the back of his head._

"_Well I don't know when you'll be back, I'd figure there's no time like the present," Fitz smiled pulling away from the hug, wiping his mop of hair out of his face. _

_Alex chuckled. She had missed him so much these past few months. It was starting to get lonely without him. _

_She fingered the pendant around her neck, the engraved W reminding her of the reason she had moved to National City in the first place. _

_Fitz grasped her hand, pulling it away from the pendant, sympathy in his eyes, "He'd be proud of you Al," _

_She nodded, swallowing her grief as she reached up and unhooked it from her neck. Gently placing in Fitz's palms, she pressed her lips to the metal. "Take care of it for me?" She asked, trying not to choke on her words, "I don't wanna lose it."_

_Fitz nodded, "I will, I promise."_

_She watched as he tucked it into his leather jacket, and she checked her father's watch. It was almost time. _

"_For the record," Fitz pulled her back to reality, "He knew before any of us what you were capable of, and he'd want you to go."_

_Alex nodded, pulling Fitz in for one final hug._

* * *

He found Alex slouched in the corner of her bed, staring into space as he passed Leonard on the way out of the room.

"Careful Boy Scout," The man cautioned, patting Ray's shoulder, "She's not exactly happy with any of us right now."

Ray nodded gratefully, turning toward the sunken woman, her jaw clenched in fury.

"She let him live."

He didn't need to be a mind reader to figure out who Alex was talking about.

"We had him right there," Her voice caught in her throat, a shaky breath barely calming her down, "And she chose to let him live."

Ray hopped up on the bed, scooting back until he was pressed against the wall, shoulder to shoulder with the woman.

"It's been a rough day on all of us," He tried to stay neutral. Despite his grievances with her, Ray couldn't blame Kendra for not killing Savage. If it had been Anna, he'd probably have done the same thing.

Alex scoffed, "and I suppose you think I'm being irrational like everyone else on this ship,"

Ray shook his head, "I think your reasoning is good. We were recruited to kill Savage and...well that didn't turn out how anyone expected."

Her light chuckle was enough to send his pulse racing, the sound like sunshine filling the room. He wanted to hear more of it. He stroked the scapula jutting out of her back, the sensation of his skin on hers sending shivers down his spine.

"That's an understatement."

Heat exploded across his shoulder, Alex tucking her head just underneath his chin. They stayed in that position for a few minutes, neither of them wanting to break free.

Ray felt his throat constrict, heart pounding against his chest. Alex's soft breathing was hot against what little skin was exposed.

It was enough for his stomach to stir in pleasure at the thought, an image of them in a similar position, albeit with less clothes flashed across his mind, stirring something between his thighs. He promptly pulled away, standing up to avoid meeting eye contact with Alex.

His gaze drifted down to the offending appendage and he grimaced, closing his eyes, willing himself to think of something-anything-less attractive than the woman behind him.

"You're still in love with her,"

Yep, that did it. He turned around at her accusation, her soft brown eyes hardening as he neither confirmed nor denied it.

He wanted to say no. To tell her that she couldn't be further from the truth. That he had fallen out of love with Kendra a long time ago. That the only reason he proposed was because Alex was right. He wanted a family again.

He wanted Anna again.

"Alex, I promise you that's not why-"

Her laugh was mirthless, void of any of the sunshine he had loved earlier. "I'm so stupid,"

"Don't-this is not your fault,"

"Oh just shut up!" Her yell caught him off guard, reminding him of 1959, of the last time he had seen her before reuniting in 1960.

He tried to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat. He couldn't. No matter what he did, it always came back up.

Alex clenched her jaw, nails digging into her palms as her brows creased. He had never seen her like this before. He never wanted to see her like this again.

"Go to her then," it was callous, mocking whatever feelings he still had for the hawk goddess, "Save the woman you love, that's why you became a hero right?"

The blow struck him right where it meant to. His chest stung, the pain spreading to the rest of him as he bit his lip in frustration.

"Alex…" He didn't know what he was going to say. He had plenty he wanted to say.

But every time those thoughts crossed his brain he remembered Felicity.

He remembered getting shut down. Hard.

He couldn't go through that again, especially after Kendra just did the same thing.

To be rejected in that way by Alex...that would break him. He knew it would.

So he swallowed his words, ignoring what little signs she was exhibiting. Because he couldn't get his hopes up. He wouldn't.

"Just go." Alex choked out, turning her gaze to the floor.

Ray finally managed to swallow the lump, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he left her room.

Just as he was headed back to his own to wallow in self-pity, Gideon stopped him with one sentence.

"Excuse me Mr. Palmer, but Miss Saunders requests your presence in the storage bay"

Carter, he recalled.

He turned on his heels, shoving the emotions he had been feeling deep into his chest, so he wouldn't have to deal with them until later, slowly catching sight of the supposed soulmates as he rounded the corner and descended the stairs.

"Ray, thank god you're here," Kendra embraced him, the gesture feeling weird after weeks of not talking.

Ray's arms stayed crossed across his chest, staring daggers at the chained up man before them. While he was trying to repair his friendship with Kendra, he agreed with Alex. This wasn't Carter, and to keep Savage alive on the off chance he could save his life was foolish. His mind drifted toward the Amazon.

He had seen her in similar states before, their year together had given him plenty of clarity in that department. But he had never seen her so angry.

She was always calm. The collected one of the group. It rattled him to see her that way.

Enough to convince him that this was a bad idea.

"Kendra, are you sure about this?" He asked, trying to hide the fear in his voice. She paid no attention to him. Something in his chest constricted and he shut his mouth, letting her approach her ex-soulmate.

Kendra held out a picture of the two of them together, a baby in Kendra's arms, "Do you remember him? He was our son. Aldus."

Scythian scoffed, a gesture so unlike his doppelganger, "Do you really expect me to believe that?"

Kendra's eyebrows creased. She was running out of ideas, and Ray was getting restless.

"I expect you to remember your feelings," She pleaded, flashing the same soft smile that had won him over, "We were together. And we were happy. We were a family."

It almost looked like Carter was regaining his senses, but Ray caught sight of his shaking hands, the balled fists that were stretching out toward the woman, "Kendra, stay back!"

He yelled, his warning not fast enough.

Scythian moved his chains until his arm was wrapped fully around her windpipe, and Ray grabbed the nearest thing to him. Slamming the butt of the blaster in Scythian's face, it was enough to loosen his grip, sending Kendra free.

Her heavy gasps were the only thing heard in the storage room until Scythian sneered, reminding Ray that this was not Carter.

"Oops." The word was careless, callous. He didn't care what he did to Kendra.

He could feel his blood boiling at the thought. Unable to stomach the thought of Kendra alone with him, he turned toward the woman.

"Stay away from him," Ray cautioned, never taking his eyes off the prisoner, "I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?"

Ray turned around at the top of the stairs, meeting the wide-eyed gaze of his ex-girlfriend, "To end this."

When he reached the brig, he was surprised to see Rip leaving with a triumphant smile on his face, but somehow that didn't make Ray feel any less nervous. Especially since Vandal seemed pleased to see him.

"Dr. Palmer, To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

Ray didn't want to beat around the bush. Instead, he cut straight to the chase.

"You're gonna tell me how to free Carter's mind." He puffed out his chest in an attempt to look more intimidating. He didn't feel intimidating.

"Oh, well, all you had to do was ask," Savage smirked, "Are you sure you want me to?"

Ray kept his gaze locked on the man, "Of course I'm sure."

It wasn't a lie. He wanted this to be over.

He wanted Savage to be dead and Kendra and Carter reunited. He wanted Alex to stop being so angry. He wanted things to return to normal.

Savage still looked unconvinced, "Because the moment I release him, you will lose her forever."

Ray shrugged, "I don't care about Kendra, not in that way. Not anymore."

Savage chuckled at his response, pacing the glass cell. "It seems you too have fallen for the Amazon's charms then?"

Ray refused to dignify his question with a response. Suddenly all that anger he had pushed down was bubbling again, trying to force its way to the surface.

"I don't need a verbal answer," Savage continued to play with him, "Your expression is confirmation enough, the real question is, does she know?"

Ray's shifting gaze was all he needed to figure out the answer.

Savage's chuckle was low, his smile never wavering, "or is she like Chay-Ara? The woman who refused you?"

"Alex is nothing like Kendra," Ray spat out, knowing that Savage was preying on his worst fears, trying to get a rise out of him. Unfortunately, it was working.

Savage pursed his lips, "I wouldn't be so sure," he ceased his pacing, meeting Ray at the glass door again, "Because no matter what you pick you will be losing one of them."

The lump in his throat was back, and this time it refused to go away.

"But then they would hardly be the first women you've lost, now, would they?"

* * *

Alex was finally rejoining the team on the bridge when Kendra burst through the doors, tracks of tears staining her face.

"Savage has escaped." Her voice was thick, sobbing as she held her hand up to her mouth.

Alex's blood ran cold.

"What?" Rip raised his voice, but that only made Kendra more hysterical.

"Rip, I'm so sorry." She began, babbling on about her mistakes, "I went to talk to him about saving Carter, and then he kept saying all these things-"

"Pull up all the surveillance monitors, now!" Rip cut off the wailing woman, going straight into defense mode.

"I'm afraid Vandal Savage has already freed Carter Hall, and is preparing to disengage-" Gideon's voice warped into incomprehensible gibberish and the hairs on the back of Alex's neck stood up.

"Gideon?" The Amazon asked, trying to figure out what could've happened to their AI companion.

"Her entire operational matrix is offline," Stein informed them, laying on another problem they had to deal with, "And without her help…"

Rip clenched his jaw, "We'll have to make our approach the old-fashioned way."

Alex, frankly, couldn't care less about their navigational issues. She was more preoccupied with the villain Kendra let loose.

A view she was more than happy to share with her fellow teammates, "Shouldn't we be more worried about Savage?"

Rip's coat flourished as he whipped around, nodding in agreement, "Yes. Which is why I need you to take Mr. Rory, find Dr. Palmer and recapture Savage. In the meantime, if the rest of us can't figure out how to pilot the ship without Gideon, we're never gonna be able to leave the Time Stream."

Alex nodded, pulling her retractable sword out of her back pocket and unsheathing it.

Mick looked semi-impressed and grabbed his heat gun, "If you, me, and the idiot live through this, I'll make sure you kill her" He gestured toward Kendra, who looked scared enough as it was.

Alex smirked at his joke and wasted no time leaving to find Ray. They wasted a little time suiting up, but got to the hallway just in time to hear Savage's raging yell, followed by laser fire.

"You should've left me back in 2166!"

Alex rolled her eyes, "Should've killed you in 2166" She muttered under her breath.

"Who are you to stand up against me," He continued to yell, his blaster lighting up the hallway every time he fired, "Vandal Savage, destroyer of empires?"

It was Leonard who answered, "Leonard Snart, robber of ATMs!"

He popped out from behind the corner to send an icy blast Savage's way, and Alex slid forward, landing in a defensive position in front of Snart, bracelets blocking blaster fire. From behind one of the many doorways of the Waverider, the man wearing Carter Hall's face stepped out.

"It's still two against five," Mick spoke up, joining Leonard and Alex in the hallway, his heat gun prepped.

Savage's face twisted into a smile, "Come on!"

Mick and Leonard charged forward at Savage, Alex leading them while Ray and Kendra set their sights on Carter.

Mick and Leonard covered her from behind while she slid underneath the blaster fire, sending a kick into Savage's shins before pushing herself upward to continue the fight. Her lasso ripped the blaster out of Savage's hand, leaving him defenseless. She dodged his punch, slamming her foot into his gut, sending him reeling against the wall as the sound of a charging weapon was heard behind her.

She whipped around to see Ray running down the hallway, missing his shots against Savage. This gave the tyrant enough time to recover, elbowing Alex in the face and sending her reeling.

Mick Rory: Haircut! Move your fat head so I can get a clean shot!

Ray took over, trying to block Savage's blows and land a shot, but all he succeeded in doing was getting caught in Savage's grip, the tyrant using the photons to blast Mick and Leonard, missing the two by a hair, but still succeeding in knocking them out. Alex moved in with her sword, stabbing right through the man's stomach and Savage let out a guttural yell, launching one final photon into Ray's face, sending him collapsing to the floor unconscious.

The heat in her veins was boiling, bubbling as she panted. Chest constricting at the sight of Ray on the floor, she pressed forward, the man barely able to block her blows as she pushed him down the hallway, watching as Rip appeared out of nowhere to help Kendra take on Carter.

But she wasn't focused on that.

Savage drew his hand to his wound, playing with the blood that was now on his hands. His yell was a war cry and his blows grew faster, harder to block, but Alex didn't care. She ducked under his punches, swiping her leg against his, his injury making him slower than he already was.

His back slammed against the metal floor and Alex's vision turned red, kneeling on his wrist to pin him down, sword raised in a killing blow.

"Alex stop!" Rip's voice pierced her ears, breaking through the constant ringing.

She shook her head, "He deserves to die"

"No one agrees with you more than me," Rip tried to appeal to her, "But remember what you stand for. This isn't justice, this is vengeance."

The sword shook in her hands, blade quivering as she debated her options. She knew Rip was right. She wasn't that person anymore, and she didn't want to be.

Hot water hit her cheeks and with a sob, she dropped her sword, the metal clanging against the floor of the ship. She collapsed against the chest of the man who had talked her out of it, Rip's comforting hands embracing her.

The sound of a body stirring caught the Captain's attention, and he pulled the woman tighter to him, "He's alive. Ray's alive" He assured her, "You saved him. You saved us all."

* * *

A poker game was exactly what she needed right now. As she shuffled her cards trying to figure out which ones to play, Leonard kept his eyes on the door.

"Did you hear that?" He asked the two women he was playing with and Alex rolled her eyes.

Whatever he was doing wouldn't work on them.

Sara slapped his hand playfully, "Don't try to distract me."

Instead of playfully flirting back, Leonard tore their hand of cards away from them, shoving the deck in his pockets as he grasped his gun.

"We need to find somewhere to hide." His tone was urgent, begging them to listen to what he was saying. Sara and Alex exchanged apprehensive looks before turning back toward the rogue.

"Why?" Alex asked, trying to uncover his motives.

Leonard only said one word, "Alexa."


	22. Destiny

Sara pushed upward on the hatch, pulling herself onto the floor. Alex followed quickly after her, her limbs aching from stuffing themselves into the small space.

"How did you even know that was down there?" Sara asked, stretching her arms out. Alex joined her, leaning over until her elbows touched the floor, a soft tug on her hamstrings before pulling back up.

Leonard joined them, a smirk on his face as he moved out of the library and into the main part of the bridge. "When Rip first recruited us, I made it my business to case every square inch of this tub in the event there was something worth stealing," He paused, like he was considering his next words, "There wasn't. Let's get out of here."

Alex stood up at his statement, eyes widening in disbelief. "Hold on, we can't just leave,"

"Why not?" Leonard remarked, lifting his eyebrows at her, "We're alive, we have the ship, and the Time Masters are taking care of Savage. Our job is done."

Alex scoffed, crossing her arms at his callous behavior. What the hell had happened to him? She thought he was changing. He was changing.

"What about the team?" Sara brought up, taking a spot next to Alex, her tone incredulous.

Leonard simply shrugged, "There's nothing more we can do for them."

She scoffed again, rolling her eyes. This was not the same person she had come to know.

Snart was good, she knew that.

"You're just gonna leave Mick?" Sara exclaimed, trying to appeal to his loyal nature. Despite what he may project, Leonard did care about his friends.

They all knew it.

"If the Time Masters are half as twisted as Mick said, there's an excellent chance Mick is no longer Mick," Leonard was getting impatient, his foot tapping the floor while his voice went up in volume, "Now why aren't we flying yet?"

"You're scared," Alex announced, catching the rogue off guard, "That's why you want to leave."

"Of course I'm scared," Leonard snapped, "They turned my partner into a killing machine, who's to say they won't do that to us?"

Alex stepped down, her boots clanging against the metal of the Waverider, "Because we can break them out, but we need your help,"

"You're insane," Leonard chuckled, shooting a quick look at Sara, "Get us out of here now,"

Sara shook her head, arms still crossed, "No, I'm not going anywhere without the rest of the team."

The charge of the cold gun caught them both of guard, the barrel pointed directly at Sara, "Maybe I didn't make myself clear."

He wouldn't do it, Alex told herself. That wasn't who he was anymore.

But the pounding of her heart and the constriction of her throat were disagreeing with her.

"Don't do that," Sara's jaw clenched, her hand shaking, "Don't act like you're that same cold-hearted bastard that I first met," Leonard's grip never wavered, "I remember Russia. And you were the one who told me not to kill Stein."

"Yeah, because you seem to have a problem with being a killer," Leonard remarked, keeping his eye trained on Sara, "I, however, don't."

Alex had to do something. Even if she believed that Leonard wouldn't shoot Sara, that didn't mean she could stand by while it happened.

"Prove it," Sara challenged, "Shoot me."

Without hesitation Alex stepped in between the two, "Enough!" she turned to face Leonard, taking a protective stance against the man. "You do that and you'll have to go through me,"

The seconds that passed felt like hours, the tension so thick you could cut it with a knife.

Leonard's eyes never moved.

Alex kept hers trained on the rogue.

The silence that hung over them was agonizing.

Until it was broken by the sound of a phone ringing.

It rang three times until Sara finally picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Ms. Lance."

Gideon's voice barely cut through the static, but they could hear her. She was alive.

"Gideon, you're alive," Sara spoke into the old phone, shoulders relaxing as relief washed over the three of them.

"If by "alive" you mean that my operating system is intact, yes," Gideon informed them, launching into a spiel that Alex could barely understand, "I was able to upload into the latency core to avoid being wiped out when the Time Masters-"

"We can share war stories later, Sara cut her off, "Where the rest of the team?"

"They're in cell block 4587," Alex immediately grabbed a lone piece of paper, writing down the number and stuffing it in her pocket as Gideon continued, "and they, too, are alive... for the moment."

Her chest seized, tightening up as she caught the end of Gideon's statement.

"What do you mean "for the moment?" Alex gulped.

Gideon didn't answer.

* * *

Alex sprawled across the Captain's chair, tapping her fingers against the worn metal, waiting for Gideon to finally reconnect to the Time Drive.

"Just another moment. I'm almost through."

Leonard's drawl brought her attention back to him, his tin ring tapping out a similar rhythm against the floor of the stairs. "Even if this works, we're never gonna be able to fly out off here."

"Well, that's the beauty of having a timeship," Alex snapped back, her voice flat, "We don't have to fly anywhere."

Leonard chuckled softly. She still wasn't over his previous behavior. He had almost shot Sara. And She wasn't sure he would've called it off if it hadn't been for Gideon.

He continued to tap, and Alex stared at Leonard, silently telling him to stop.

He didn't.

Thankfully Sara was saying exactly what she was thinking, "Can you stop doing that?!" She yelled at the rogue, "Why did you start wearing that thing, anyways?"

Leonard ceased his tapping, twirling the ring around his finger, "It's from the first job I ever pulled off with Mick," He announced, sitting up from his laid back position, "A Freeport warehouse."

Alex's laugh escaped her lips before she could stop it. Leonard and Sara both turned in her direction, waiting for her to finish.

"I'm sorry, I just never pegged you for the sentimental type," Alex continued to laugh, trying to swallow it down so she could focus on the mission.

Leonard rolled his eyes and stood up, "It's not a keepsake. It's a reminder."

"Of what?" Sara questioned, trying to get a better sense of Leonard's motives.

"That even the best-laid plans can go sideways," Leonard explained, sending a look Alex's way as he said that, "Spent a lot of time prepping for that heist. Casing the target. Memorizing shift changes and delivery schedules, and then surprise! Turns out they'd upgraded their security system. We had to bolt. Three weeks of planning and all I have to show for it…"

"Was a lousy pinky ring." Alex finished for him, standing up from her position, "So sad."

Leonard scoffed, twirling the pinky ring again, "Considering I'm about to trade my life for nothing, I think I came out ahead."

The two of them stared at each other, and Alex briefly wondered if he was gonna pull the cold gun on her again.

"The Time Drive is back online," Gideon informed them and Sara wasted no time. She slid into the Captain's chair, Leonard and Alex buckling themselves in.

"Everyone ready?" Sara asked, and Alex nodded.

Sara took a deep breath, closing her eyes and letting the seat spin around "Alright everybody, buckle up, cause we're going_ back_ to the end of the universe!"

* * *

Ray tapped his fingers against the metal of his cell. He couldn't stand this anymore. Alex hadn't been brought in and Kendra had been taken from the moment they had stepped foot in the cell block.

He was starting to get worried. He had heard the Time Masters whispering, and Rip's insanity wasn't helping.

He had been shown the future.

A future where he dies.

He swallowed the lump growing in his throat and pushed himself away from the front of the cell.

The swishing of fabric could be heard as the Time Master who arrested them marched in with a frown on his face, "Your friends have time-jumped away. We've lost them. And I've lost any reason to keep you alive," He sighed like he was losing his favorite toy instead of taking the lives of several people.

Ray held up his hands, his protests going unheard, he wasn't ready to die yet, "Hold on, let's just talk about this a moment."

He still had so much he wanted to do. The Time Master seemed uninterested.

Thankfully the sound of footsteps delayed their execution, "Time Master Druce." A guard announced, gun at the ready.

"Kill them all." The Time Master ordered, pointing at a crestfallen Rip Hunter, "Starting with him."

The guard gave a salute, "Yes, sir. But we've calculated when the Waverider is headed."

That seemed to catch the Time Master's attention, and Ray's as well.

"Past or future?"

Ray knew their friends wouldn't leave them here. Alex wouldn't leave them here.

She cared too much about this team. Ray's pulse quickened.

He needed to see her. He needed to tell her the truth about everything.

Needed to tell her how important she was to him.

"The present." The guard announced.

Before Ray could register what was happening, a blast of cold air flew through the entryway, followed by a jet of blue plasma, knocking the guard out.

A flash of golden light followed, wrapping itself around the neck of the Time Master before tightening the grip.

The Time Master clawed at his neck, trying fruitlessly to tear the lasso away from his jugular, but a fist to the face silenced his attempts, Alex's frame standing over the unconscious man.

"Somebody call for a rescue?" Alex smirked, and Leonard shot a look at her.

"That was my line," He quipped, causing Alex to chuckle.

"Couldn't resist,"

Ray could've kissed her right there. He knew she wouldn't leave them behind. How she had gotten Leonard to agree he had no idea.

"Mr. Snart, Miss Prince, as always, your timing is impeccable," Stein spoke in awe from his cell.

Ray caught sight of a shadowy figure emerging behind Alex in the entryway, "Or not," He warned pointing out the man behind them.

The lump in his throat returned as he watched his two friends take on Mick Rory again.

Alex had taken up a defensive position, while Snart had his gun trained on the man.

"Put the gun down, Mick," Leonard ordered.

Mick stood there, stuffed into the Chronos bodysuit like the first time they had seen him. Cold. Unfeeling.

This time he didn't have vengeance to keep him going.

This time they had really lost their teammate.

One of the Time Masters had appeared, a twisted smile on his face. Ray's throat constricted as he watched Alex step in front of Leonard.

He knew she was strong, but she wasn't invincible.

"Chronos, fire." The Time Master ordered.

Ray wanted to close his eyes, but found he couldn't look away. It was too late for them. Mick was Chronos once more, and Ray would soon watch his friends die before being executed himself.

He waited for the shot to come.

Waited for the screams that would haunt him like Anna's did.

Waited to see his closest friends die while he stood by, unable to do anything again.

He had spent his whole life's work ensuring that he was never put in this position again. And here he was.

Pain pierced through his chest, eyes trained on the four adversaries. No matter how hard he tried.

He couldn't look away.

"Sure thing." He heard Chronos speak aloud, laser fire going off.

The Time Master collapsed to the ground, placing pressure on his newly cauterized wound.

When Chronos took off his helmet, there stood Mick, free from any brainwashing.

Ray blew out a sigh of relief.

* * *

Alex led the charge into the bridge, Rip and Ray following close behind. She hadn't had time to comes to terms with the fact that Mick had almost killed her. Again.

Or the fact that they were struggling to escape. Again.

"Where's everyone else?" Sara asked trying to maneuver the Waverider away from the Vanishing Point and back into the temporal zone.

"Uh, Mr. Snart is helping the Professor get situated in the Med Bay." Rip announced, heading immediately toward the navigational and communication panel.

Ray moved in for a hug, embracing Alex tightly as he answered Sara's question, "He's not doing so how without his nuclear super-half- I'm so glad you're okay."

Alex reciprocated, her response cut off by a very angry Mick Rory.

"Get me out of this stupid robot suit!"

Rip moved back to the main controls, "First get us the hell out of here... Gideon?"

"I'm here, Captain," The AI chirped, "and if I could take a moment to add how wonderful it feels to be back together."

Alex caught a slight upward tick of Rip's lips, "I have missed you too."

Gideon almost sounded like she was smiling too, "Now that we've had our reunion, I should mention we have a slight problem."

Alex stumbled, grasping ahold of Ray's arm for support, "What the hell was that?"

Ray pulled up the footage from outside the Waverider, eyes going wide, "Uh, the Time Masters are locking onto us with a tractor beam."

"Well then let's get moving," Alex requested, sending a look Sara's direction.

"Punch it, Gideon!" Sara called before taking her hand off the controls, "Sorry, your job."

Rip dismissed her concerns, moving back toward the navigational panel. The Waverider shifted again, throwing off Alex's balance.

"Ms. Lance, stay right where you are," Rip ordered, pressing a series of buttons, "You've proven yourself quite adept at piloting this ship."

Mick was next to intervene, "About the tractor beam-"

"Dr. Palmer is going to help me remotely disable it." Rip announced, and Alex felt Ray straighten up at the news. Clearly he had no idea that was the plan.

"I've already established an uplink to the omnimatrix mainframe, Captain." Gideon chirped.

Alex rolled her eyes, "Someone who speaks English tell me what that means?"

"She's trying to override it remotely," Ray explained, shaking his head, They're not gonna let her though, The Time Masters are evil, but they're not dumb."

The ship rumbled again, jolting backward, almost sweeping the floor from underneath Alex's feet.

"Well that doesn't sound great," She muttered under breath. Maybe she should be flying this ship instead.

"Whatever you're gonna do, you better do it now," Sara ordered, trying to move out of the tractor beam, "They've locked on."

Alex sent a silent prayer to the gods, hoping they were listening.

"Wait," Ray began, turning his focus toward Mick, "What if we convince the system that the override command is coming from somewhere else?"

Rip seemed to catch onto his plan the same time Alex did, "Or someone else."

Ray smiled, happy someone was understanding his train of thought, "Someone they trust. Just need to borrow…" He ripped Mick's gauntlet off, "Chronos' operating system."

His hands flew across the tech, wiring it so Gideon would have access to it.

Alex couldn't help but be impressed.

"I'm "hot-swapping" Mr. Rory's hard drive as we speak," Gideon announced. Ray smiled, letting his hands do all the work. Alex's mind wandered, gaze trained on the fingers that were working their magic.

"And... done," Ray announced. Alex cleared her throat, trying to keep the heat off her face and ignoring the fluttering between her thighs.

She moved forward, focusing on the video footage of the Vanishing Point as the Waverider pushed forward, soon surrounded by the calming green of the Temporal Zone.

The door to the bridge slid open, revealing Leonard sans Stein. "Professor's in the Med Bay," Leonard announced, something akin to a smile on his face, "Promises not to blow up while he's onboard, which I thought was considerate."

Alex bobbed her head, "That's nice of him,"

Rip paced anxiously, his hands settled on his hips, "Yeah, the Professor's condition is the least of our worries, I'm afraid."

Alex creased her eyebrows. What the hell had happened to them in there? Rip's eyes refused to look at any of them, staring off into the ground. She knew that look, the sunken circles that decorated his skin, red lining his irises.

She'd seen it on too many people.

"Yeah," Ray spoke up instead, his gaze locked on the control panel before him, "much to my chagrin, it turns out everything we've done, maybe even our whole lives, has been determined by the Time Masters."

Alex scoffed at that revelation, "Well that's bullshit"

Ray nodded his head, eyebrows twitching upward in an 'oh well' gesture. Alex shook her head. Her life wasn't determined by fate. The Time Masters couldn't have interfered. Because if they had, then her father's death wasn't an accident.

Her mother leaving the island wasn't an accident.

If the Time Masters had been manipulating everything about her life, then that means that they wanted her to interfere in the DEO's experiments regarding universal travel, they wanted her to get stuck here.

That means everything she did since being here, her time with Fitz, it had all been orchestrated to get her here.

Her stomach churned, crawling up her throat until it threatened to expel out of her, a wave of nausea falling over her.

And for someone who never got sick, it was a bit disconcerting.

"What?" Sara asked, the same incredulous look on her face.

Rip faced the two of them, a regretful look in his gaze, "The Time Masters have this thing called the Oculus, which allows them not only to gaze into the future, but to engineer it." Rip explained, moving his gaze until it was solely focused on Alex, "A future where Miss Prince joins forces with Savage to stop an alien invasion."

"And a future where I'm dead, apparently." The statement came from Ray, who sounded like he was casually debating the weather.

Alex shook her head, running a hand through her curls. Suddenly it all made sense. The Pilgrim's reluctance to kill her, Savage's obsession with her. It was the Time Masters feeding him information.

And Ray...he couldn't die. She wouldn't let him die.

He was the only good thing she still had left in her life. She wasn't gonna let the Time Masters take him like Ares took her father.

She would find a way to save him. She would find a way to save all of them.

"And why would they want you dead?"Sara asked, still trying to process all of this information.

"More importantly," Alex interjected, "Why are we even listening to the Time Masters? They imprisoned you, who's to say they didn't make all of this up?"

"Because I saw it," Rip said solemnly, his face falling, "Dr. Palmer's death is inevitable, but in my opinion, his death is not part of their plan."

Alex rolled her eyes at the blanket statement, "You know, shockingly, that doesn't make me feel any better,"

Ray nodded, "Yeah, I'm with Alex on this one, that's not reassuring." The sound of skin hitting skin echoed through the bridge as Mick punched Ray in the shoulder, "Ow!" The scientist grunted in pain, rolling his shoulder back.

Alex just sent Mick a series of raised eyebrows, all saying 'really?'

"You saying the Time Masters wanted me to do that?" The rogue asked, a smug look on his face. Alex rolled her eyes again.

Rip shook his head, voice growing in volume, "What I'm saying is that they've been engineering our lives to move in very specific directions. And we are playing out that script even now."

Sara thankfully, decided to actually take charge of this conversation, "So we can go to 2016, but that might be what the Time Masters want," She began, "Or we can go get Kendra and Carter…

"Which could also be what they want." Alex finished for her, letting out a groan of frustration. She hated being told what to do, especially if it was coming from people who thought they were better than everyone else. She barely did what Rip wanted her to do, but an entire council of Rip Hunters monitoring her life from start to finish?

Now that was insufferable.

"Then we need to do what they don't want," Ray piped up, looking like a lightbulb had gone off in his head, a slight upturn to his lips, "If the Oculus is what they're using to control us, then we need to destroy it."

"But how do we do that if the Time Bastards are pulling our strings?" Leonard asked from beside her, drinking in all the information that had been laid out before them.

Rip's demeanor suddenly changed, eyes lighting up again, "Well, Druce told me that the Oculus' ability to control our actions doesn't work in the Vanishing Point, most likely because the Vanishing Point itself exists outside of time."

"Explains why we were able to escape," Mick commented.

Alex nodded, "And how they didn't see us coming," She added on, recalling the surprise on the Time Master's face when they had rescued their friends.

"And why we might actually have a shot at destroying this thing." Sara smiled, standing up from the Captain's chair to slap Ray's other shoulder, "I'm with Ray."

He rubbed his shoulder, and Alex chuckled at his hurt expression. She didn't blame him. Sara was almost as strong as a natural Amazon.

Rip nodded, " If I'm gonna be someone's puppet, I'm gonna be the one who cuts his own bloody strings."

"And I like blowing stuff up." Mick justified.

Alex smirked at their attitudes. This was what she had signed up for. "I've been saying 'screw you' to fate for years. I'm not about to stop now."

Her eyes shifted to Ray, waiting for his answer. He seemed lost in thought.

"We set out on this mission to stop Savage and save the world," Ray began, the slight smile widening as he caught Alex's dark hues in his own, "To become legends and change our fates. That mission hasn't changed."

"This is madness," Leonard smirked, "I like it."

"Gideon, plot a course to the Oculus Wellspring," Rip ordered, turning back toward the team, "Team...I think it's about time we seized our destinies back."

* * *

Alex always went to the kitchen in times of stress and it looked like she wasn't the only one. Ray was sat on one side of the counter, chowing down on a red velvet cupcake.

She was thrown back to her birthday celebration, the two of them sharing her birthday cupcake from Sal's.

Times really were much simpler then.

"You make those yourself?" Alex joked, pulling a chair out next to him, leaning against the white tabletop.

Ray nodded, "Kind of," he began, "I wanted to recreate Sal's recipe, but that man is a genius,"

Alex chuckled, reaching over and stealing a piece from the bottom of the cupcake, "Actually his daughter was the one who made them," She smiled at the thought of the two of them. Sal was long dead by now, but his daughter...she was still alive. She was still there in 2016.

And she had no idea what was going to happen in the future.

Footsteps brought both of them out of their thoughts, Mick joining both of them.

"Mmm. If I'm gonna die, no sense watching my diet." Ray explained reaching for another cupcake.

No one chuckled at that joke. Alex couldn't even entertain the idea.

"The Time Masters have been known to make mistakes, you know?" Mick announced his unlikely support, sending a worried look Ray's direction.

Ray just shrugged, his optimistic expression dropping at the thought. "But what if those mistakes were all part of their plan? Actually, I gotta stop thinking about it. The temporal implications are infinite."

"That's why I don't think."

Alex chuckled and shook her head, facing the rogue. "You want one Mick?" She gestured to the plate of sweets Ray had made for his last meal and Mick took a pastry from off the top.

"Not bad, right?" Ray smiled proudly, no doubt grateful for the change of subject.

"Good."

Ray and Alex looked at each other, both sensing what the other was thinking. They had the same question, and no one wanted to be the first one to ask.

"So how'd you do it?" Alex broke the silence, swallowing her nerves.

Mick spoke through mouthfuls of food, "Do what?"

"How did you not get turned into Chronos?" Ray followed up, his gaze never wavering, "You said the only way you held onto yourself the first time was by focusing on your hate-"

"What did I focus on this time?" Mick finished for them, the couple nodding as Mick stared at them, "The team."

"Aww," Alex responded, causing Mick to turn around in embarrassment.

"And how much you cared for us?" Ray's comment wasn't helping, but it was funny to see Mick put in such a vulnerable position.

"I thought about how royally screwed you'd be without me." Mick turned back around, grabbing another pastry, "My point being, if I can survive not being turned into Chronos, you can survive anything they throw at you."

Ray nodded, his optimism finding a way back onto his face, "Thanks. I'll keep it in mind."

Mick nodded, his threatening demeanor returning, "Well, you better because if you tell the team I actually care, I'll shave your head,"

Alex made a face and shrugged as he left the room, "At least he didn't threaten to kill you, so progress?"

Ray chuckled at her joke, tossing the wrappers in the garbage and turning to face Alex.

"Alex, listen, if I die out there-"

"You won't," She reassured him, grasping tightly onto his hand and squeezing it, "I promise,"

"Please I need you to hear this," Ray choked out, placing his other hand on top of hers, "If I die, I need you to know how much this," He gestured to the ship, "All of this meant to me, how much you meant to me."

Alex's throat tightened, breathing shallowly as Ray continued to talk. She wasn't ready for this conversation. She wasn't ready to say goodbye.  
"I know we've had our ups and downs, but our friendship..." Ray paused, silently scanning her face before continuing, "Everything that we've been through has made me a better person. Because of you."

The prickling in Alex's nose was a warning sign, telling her to shut down this conversation now. "Why are you acting like this is goodbye?"

Ray's hesitation told her all she needed to know.

Alex shook her head, "I'm not letting fate dictate our lives anymore," She spoke strongly, determined to stop whatever was going to happen from happening, "If fate says that I team up with Vandal Savage then I will do everything in my power to stop that from ever happening, and if fate says that you're going to die out there, then I'll stop that too." The knot in her throat grew bigger and bigger, until she finally choked out what she had been trying to say all along, "I can't lose you too."

Ray nodded, and he pulled her into his chest, arms squeezing her tightly as her head fit underneath his chin.

No one disturbed them for a long time and all they wanted to do was stay there until the storm passed.

* * *

The team met no reinforcements as they walked through the Oculus Wellspring. Alex felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

It was easy. Almost too easy.

"Hello again, Rip," Druce drawled, several guards popping out from behind the pillars, "Right on schedule."

Alex pulled out her sword and shield, grateful for Ray revamping the circular disc so it could deflect blaster fire.

"Uh, I think we've walked into a trap," Ray muttered, looking around. They were surrounded.

Druce shook his head, "No, it's destiny. I must say you've all played your parts well," He announced, turning his gaze toward Alex, "And it is a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Prince,"

She sent him a sarcastic smile, "Wish I could say the same,"

Druce simply sighed and continued forward, "As with everything else you've done, I'm afraid it was all for nothing. All your posturing-"

"All your claims about doing what's best for the timeline," Rip cut off his superior, anger stirring just below the surface, "About protecting history, and it all comes down to cold-blooded murder."

Alex stared at the firing squad Druce had assembled. Even if she could take them, her friends couldn't.

It was too late for them. They would kill her friends, take her prisoner, and her entire life would be determined for her.

Her throat constricted, heart pounding at the thought. She wouldn't let that happen.

"The difference between murder and execution is only a matter of authority," Druce explained, his arrogance poisoning the air around them, it made her sick, "I have it. You don't. Kill them." He ordered, the Legends taking a defensive stance against the guards. But it was too late.

They were already dead.

The sight of laser fire rained down from the sky, killing most of the firing squad and clearing the path.

Alex whipped around, the rare synchronicity between the team returning as they all turned to face the Jumpship that had just touched down.

A laugh escaped Alex's lips. She knew there was someone else missing.

"Hope I'm not too late." Jax joked, holding out his hand for Stein to take.

Stein shook his head, reuniting with his other half, "No, Jefferson, you're right on time."

The two merged and Alex ran forward, engulfing Jax in a tight hug, "Thank god you're a genius," She quipped, and Jax just shrugged.

Rip couldn't even move, still in awe from the rescue, "How did you-"

"What?" Jax challenged, a wide smirk on his face, "You thought you were the only one who knew a thing or two about time travel?"

Rip let the matter drop and congratulated the kid, "Good work. We need to get to the Oculus before reinforcements arrive."

They walked through the open doors, boots clanging against the cement as they reached the giant glowing pit in the middle of the floor.

It stared up at her, almost tempting Alex to take one step into the green timeline, but she knew that if she did she would be scattered through time, burnt up.

Ray's voice pulled her out of her thoughts, slowly climbing up the ramp. Alex's heart jumped into her chest as he crossed the ramp. Silently praying that he wouldn't fall.

"It'll take about two minutes to figure out how to self-destruct this thing," He began, Rip following close behind.

The Captain nodded, "We'll buy you some time." He turned back toward the team, "You lot guard the entrance. Mr. Rory, Miss Prince, you're with me."

Alex nodded, catching the pistol Rip had thrown her way. She knew he didn't mean anything by it, but she needed a long-range weapon. She supposed this would do.

Taking a spot on the other side of Ray, she stared around the corner, looking for any guards that were coming their way.

She didn't have to wait very long.

"Hurry up, haircut," Mick ordered, keeping a lookout.

Alex moved from her post, checking in on Ray.

"How much longer?" Rip asked, cutting off her response.

Ray shrugged, playing with several wires and cutting several others, "Well, just about to reverse the polarity matrix. Once I do that, I say we have about two minutes before this whole place goes boom."

God, she could've kissed him right then and there.

"How big of a boom?" Mick asked.

Ray continued to poke and prod the Oculus, his focus never wavering, "On a scale from one to ten... a googolplex."

Alex chuckled. Even at the end of the world Ray was gonna crack a joke.

He let out a grunt of frustration and removed his helmet, followed quickly by his gloves.

"What are you doing?" Rip asked, his tone growing frantic.

While Alex didn't entirely understand it, she knew it couldn't be good.

"I can't work with all this gear on," Ray complained, setting down his helmet and gloves by his side.

"You can't."

He wiggled his fingers as he began to get back to work, "A programmer needs his hands."

Rip seemed unconvinced, his forehead creasing as he tried to stop the inventor from going through with it.

"Ray-"

"I got this, don't worry."

"No, you don't." Rip yelled, the tired look in his eyes returning, all hope lost, "This is what I saw. This is what Druce showed me. This is how you die."

Alex's heart dropped into her stomach at his words, pressure building behind her eyes as she stared at Ray's hesitant gaze.

"It's okay," Ray finally spoke up, his adam's apple moving up and down as he swallowed whatever he was feeling, "All my life I've wanted to make a difference. Creating a future for you guys without the Time Masters influence, that counts."

Alex shook her head. She wouldn't let him die.

She promised him that he wouldn't die.

She couldn't lose him too.

"Alex-"

"No," Her voice cracked, shaking her head.

"Please, I need you to hear-"

Alex wrapped her hands around Ray's cheeks, thumb caressing his skin, "Save it for later, because I'm getting you out of here,"

Ray nodded, his gaze fluttering to the lower half of her face, lingering there before pulling up to meet her glassy gaze again.

It would be so easy. If they were dying she would do it.

But they weren't dying. Ray wasn't dying.

So she pulled him into an embrace instead, ducking to avoid the laser fire sent their way.

The two of them pulled apart, and Alex prepped her pistol, the green laser meeting red.

"I'm almost there, so keep 'em off me, okay?" Ray requested. Alex nodded, and an unlikely form of support came from Mick.

"We got you."

The barrage was endless, she killed one, two more popped up.

It was agonizing, firing, and then hiding and then firing again.

This was why she would've been a horrible Archer. Great with firing arrows, but too damn impatient to actually stay in these defensive positions. She wanted to just take her sword and slice through them.

"How close are we?" Alex yelled over the blaster fire, taking refuge beside Ray as she watched him fiddle with the Oculus some more.

"All right. Almost done." Ray said with a smile on his face. The smile faded when something popped up, and he dropped into a frown, "Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh?" The three of them said at the same time.

Ray shook his head, dodging more blaster fire as he pressed down on the platform that had popped up, "There seems to be a failsafe to prevent tampering, which probably includes trying to blow this thing up."

"English, haircut."

For the first time, Alex found herself agreeing with Mick.

"I have to maintain contact with the failsafe it order to destroy the Oculus."

Alex's stomach dropped again, and she met Mick's gaze. He seemed to be just as worried as she was.

"Not that much English."

Alex couldn't focus anymore. Her shots were all over the place.

Ray was going to die.

He was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it.

She couldn't keep her promise.

"Get back to the ship!" Ray ordered, his hand never leaving the failsafe.

Alex shook her head, "Not without you,"

"Alex," Ray whispered her name, pleading with her, silently telling her to leave, "Please, I can't lose you too."

"We're not leaving without you," Rip interjected, not ready to give up either. Ray turned toward their Captain.

"You've already seen the future: I'm dead already."

"You're right," Mick muttered, hitting Ray over the head with the butt of his gun, knocking the man out and taking his place.

"Mick-" Alex began.

The rogue shook his head, "I got this. I want revenge on those bastards. Now get outta here."

While Rip shrunk Ray, Alex moved forward, pressing her lips against Mick's scruffy cheek, embracing him tightly, "Thank you," She choked out, "You're a good person Mick."

Mick nodded, "Make sure haircut knows how lucky he is,"

She nodded, scrambling after Rip until they were back outside. Relief washed over her. Ray was safe.

Her friends were safe.

_Not all of them._ A little voice inside her head whispered. Her gut twisted, and the voice was telling her to go back in, to save Mick instead.

She tried to shake them away, but they kept returning.

"We're leaving!" Rip called, Leonard and Sara turning around to face the two of them.

"Where's Raymond and Mick?" Leonard yelled over the chaos.

"Ray's safe," Alex assured them.

"Ray is in my pocket and Mick has elected to stay" Rip explained staring back into the Oculus chamber.

"Why?"

"Ray said there's a failsafe," Alex explained, "Someone has to stay behind to hold it down."

FIRESTORM flew to the ground, out of breath, "We gotta go!"

Leonard dropped his gun to his side, turning to face Alex with a look of determination on his face. "It's been a pleasure Girl Scout,"

The realization hit her too late. His lips pressed against her cheek, dropping the cold gun in her hands as he charged forward, ignoring the cries behind him.

"No, I'm not letting you do this," She called after him, vision blurring as Rip grabbed her arm, struggling to hold her back, "Leonard! You can't! Please-"

Her chest was pounding, pain licked every bone in her body, using every ounce of strength to keep herself from breaking apart right then and there.

"Alex!" Rip sounded miles away, her gaze locked onto the door Leonard and Sara disappeared through. He couldn't do this.

She needed him.

She needed both of them.

He couldn't do this.

With one final wrench, she pulled free from Rip's grip, charging forward toward the door. The world seemed to pass in slow motion, the Time Masters barely paying any attention as she moved through them, dirt rising up from underneath her boots.

It was sharp, a stab to the chest that slowed her movements, sapped her strength as she used every ounce to move forward, dodging laser blasts, the cold gun heavy in her hand.

It weighed her down, becoming heavier with each step she took, until she felt like it was dragging on the ground.

He would survive this.

She would see him again.

" D!" She yelled at the top of her lungs, hopelessly trying to stop him.

A pair of arms wrapped around her waist, and she struggled against the tight grip, throat closing up as she continued to scream his name until her voice went hoarse, trying to kick her way free.

But the person holding her was determined not to let her go.

Her throat burned.

Her eyes itched.

Her head ached.

Her legs dragged against the floor of the Waverider, Sara and Mick falling close behind. The oculus blew up in a cloud of blue and red behind them, taking the vanishing point with it.

Where she should've felt victory she felt nothing.

She was hollow. Empty.

Alex crumpled to her knees, curling into the embrace of the person who had dragged her aboard, Rip's hands embracing her shoulders and squeezing tightly.

She stared off into space.

The tears didn't stop.

He was gone.

He had been her one constant aboard this ship. And he was gone.

What was she gonna do now?

Rip's body moved away, and she fell further, her hands barely holding her up.

Arms shook, threatening to collapse underneath her until another figure took his place soon after, with familiar arms that warmed her and a comforting whisper that soothed her. He lifted her up until they were both standing.

Hot water splashed against her cheeks again, squeezing tightly before staring out into the temporal zone, playing the scene over and over in her mind.

"He traded his life for ours. He was a hero." Ray spoke with a choked tone, he was grieving Snart as much as she was. "Which I'm pretty sure is the last thing he wanted to be remembered as."

"But that's what he was." Sara wiped a single tear from her face.

Alex nodded, biting her lip in frustration. Any tears she had left had dried up in crusty trails on her face, and any grief inside her body had morphed into anger. "That's how he deserves to be remembered," Her voice caught in her throat, ignoring the prickling in her nostrils, "As a hero. As a legend."

Ray's hand moved up and down her spine in a comforting gesture and she leaned into it.

He was gone.

Leonard Snart, the one person she had in her corner since the beginning, was dead.

It was all too familiar.

A dead friend, a craving for vengeance.

She'd been down this road before.

Except there was one crucial difference this time.

This time she wasn't alone.


	23. Legendary

She stepped out into the fresh air, unused to the pollen in the air after months aboard a ship that perfectly filtered their air.

It clogged up her nose, itching her throat. He had dropped them back off in 2016.

He was leaving them behind.

"What are we doing here?" She choked out, ignoring the numbness in her chest, staring at Rip's figure.

Their Captain sighed, regret flashing over his face, "Savage has a timeship, courtesy of the Time Masters. The timeline is unclear, due to our destruction of the Oculus, meaning Savage is lost to history," he paused, inhaling deeply before finishing his thought, "Which is why I brought you all home."

"Mission's not over, man," Jax stopped Rip, but Alex knew there was no convincing him. They had lost someone on the mission.

That was enough to call it off.

"Jax is right," Ray agreed, looking toward Alex for support. She couldn't give it to him, "We've lost Savage before. We'll find him again."

"That's not the issue is it?" Alex piped up, she caught the slight nod of agreement and bit her lip, nodding mirthlessly.  
"I will not lose more you to this mission," Rip choked out, swallowing his grief, "Carter, Kendra, Leonard...I made a mistake in thinking you were unimportant to the timeline," Rip scanned his team, stuffing his hands in his pockets, "Now that I know how...precious your lives are, I can't afford any more loss."

Ray scoffed, shaking his head, "So that's it? We're... we're just giving up?"

Rip nodded turning back to the Waverider, "I'm on my way to the refuge to retrieve our younger selves and return them to the timeline. It will be as if you never left."

Sara was the next person to protest, anger blazing across her face, "What, you think that we can just return to our old lives, and then pretend like none of this ever happened?"

Rip scrunched his face up at her words, "Mm, that might be a tad difficult."

The team looked at each other, unsure of what was going to happen next, "See I had to bring you back to May 2016, not January 2016."

Alex finally understood. The pollen, the thick air. It had been a completely different season than they had left in.

Her fingers grazed against the extrapolator in her pocket. She could go home. There was nothing keeping her here.

She could finally go back and see her family.

Everything she had ever wanted at her fingertips, and Rip was just giving it to her.

"Okay, wait," Sara interjected, clearly unhappy with this alteration, "Why? Why the change of plans, Rip?"

Alex wrapped her hands around the extrapolator and moved away from the group, ignoring the arguments breaking out between Rip and the team. She watched the Waverider take off from her spot on the sidewalk, everything that she had been working toward disappearing in the clouds.

The mission had made her better.

It had reminded her of who she was.

But she couldn't go back. No matter how much her moral compass was screaming at her. She was halfway down the sidewalk when she heard someone call her name.

"Alex wait!" She whipped around, catching sight of Ray jogging down the path. Alex shook her head. She couldn't deal with this now.

It wasn't fair.

It wasn't fair that she didn't get to keep both of them.

"Where are you going?" Ray's smile was growing wider, oblivious to her cold demeanor. Alex shrugged, not wanting to talk about it.

"Back to my apartment to pack, and then home,"

Ray's eyes drifted downward toward her pocket, narrowing at the movement he sensed.

"You're heading back?" His voice almost broke, and his breathing started to shake, "I uh, what about the mission?"

"The mission's dead Ray," Alex snapped, voice thick and catching in her throat, "Rip made that clear,"

"It doesn't have to be," He continued, always the optimist, "You were prepared to die for us yesterday, what happened?"

She bit her lip, brushing a curl away from her face as she crossed her arms, "Leonard died." Alex tried to swallow the lump growing in her throat, it refused to move, "And I was the reason for it,"

Ray's determined look faded into a regretful one, staring down at his feet. "You're not the only one," He appealed to her, "If it wasn't for me he wouldn't have been there in the first place,"

She scrunched her face, trying to keep the pressure from bursting, trying to keep the dam closed off. "I miss him," She choked out, voice breaking as she pressed her head into Ray's chest, his embrace slowing her breathing, letting the tension melt from her shoulders. A single tear carved a trail down the right side of her cheek, and she wiped it away before the two of them pulled apart.

"You know he was the only one who knew all of my secrets," Alex laughed to herself, picking at her fingers, "Really puts a new meaning to the phrase 'take it to the grave,"

Ray's fingers entwined in hers, "He would want you to do this," He urged her, brown hues peeking through long lashes in a puppy-dog stare, "What do you say Girl Scout?"

The nickname hurt, pinching her chest.

Her other hand played with the extrapolator before zipping up her pocket, "Let me get some stuff and I'll meet you back here,"

Ray's frown twisted into a wide smile, squeezing her hand one more time before bounding away. "Don't seem too eager Boy Scout!" she called after him, her hand shooting up to her necklace.

Despite everything they've been through, Kendra was her friend, and she wouldn't lose any more.

This was for Leonard.

He would want her to do this.

He would want her to be a hero.

She leaped over the city, feet denting the street just outside of her apartment. She unlocked the door, Fitz's mop of hair hanging between his arms, a groan of frustration leaving his lips as he brought his gaze upward, "Look I'm sorry about-Alex," He coughed out, mouth hanging open like he couldn't believe she was there.

"You, uh," His adam's apple bobbed up and down, "You're uh, You're back,"

"Don't worry," She smirked, dropping her bag down and moving into her room, "I just gotta grab some extra stuff and then I'll be..."

She froze. Her room was bare. Everything that had been hers was gone, replaced with empty space and fresh sheets.

There was no sign she had ever existed.

"You were gone five months," Fitz excused, causing Alex to scoff at his words, "I thought you'd gone home, or worse,"

"So you replaced me," She bit her lip, turning around, meeting his sheepish gaze. Her closest friend believed she had abandoned him.

What was it about her? Why did people seem to think she would leave them in the dust? Ray, Kendra, Mandy, and now Fitz.

She supposed it was built into her DNA. Her mother was a goddess, her sisters always had each other. They never needed anyone else. They would always come back to Themyscira. Her mother did.

She was a wanderer. Never really meant to settle down anywhere. Her mother never did. Themyscira was her home. It was written in her blood to never get too attached. She supposed that meant she would leave them eventually. But she always came back. Even when nobody wanted her to.

"I didn't replace you, Alex," Fitz stammered out, "I just...moved on."

She nodded slowly, shouldering the bag on her shoulder. "Whatever," She brushed it off, told herself that it didn't matter. But it did. Her chest pinched and she tossed her keys to him, "Have fun asshole," her vocal cords pressed together, tightening her throat as she stumbled down the stairs of her apartment. There was nothing left for her here. Not anymore.

* * *

Jax sighed, following Stein out of the car, "Ship's not going to be here, Gray. We saw it take off, remember?"

Stein's lips twitched upward slightly, a twinkle in his eyes, "Yes, and in doing so, it would have left-"

"Quantum signature." Ray's voice drew their attention forward, gesturing to the criminal beside him, "That's what I've been trying to tell Mick." he shook something in his hand, "Radio beacon."

His eyes scanned the horizon, looking for the very first person he had talked to, and hoping she would show up.

Stein lifted his own device up, "Quantum entangler."

"Boys and their toys," A familiar voice sent Ray's stomach fluttering, and Alex strutted forward, her lips pressed together in a hard line, "The real question is how do we get in contact with Rip?"

Ray turned to her, his teeth peeking through his smile, "Glad to see you made it,"

Her frown disappeared for a moment, replaced by a tight smile as Stein's response was cut off by another figure emerging from the shadows.

"Ms. Lance, are you all right?"

Sara said nothing, her face the same expression as Alex's, only her eyes stared at the cement in front of her, jaw clenched, "How do we get the Waverider back here?"

* * *

Alex turned to the two scientists and Ray and Stein began to formulate a plan.

Ten minutes later they were still stuck in Star City. Alex was pacing, Sara and her crossing paths occasionally. She recognized the look in Sara's eyes. It was the look of absolute vengeance. She wanted revenge for something that had happened in the last five months, and frankly, Alex couldn't blame her. She was going to have some choice words for Rip when they reached the Waverider.

Ray and Stein were busy bickering about each other's intelligence, and she could tell the rest of the team was getting restless.

"Hey, geniuses!" Alex ceased her pacing, eager to figure out what the hell was going on, "Can you reach the Waverider or not?"

Ray and Stein shared a look before answering at the same time, "We're working on it."

"Well, work harder," Alex spoke slowly, like she was dealing with children. Patience had never been her strong suit. That was where her mother excelled. She continued to pace.

Her footsteps froze when Jax pointed toward the sky, "Actually, guys, I think it just worked."

Alex's gaze fixated on the giant ship, the wind from the landing blowing her hair back as Rip descended the ramp to join them in the clearing.

His hands were placed on his hips, clearly disapproving of their attempt to contact him. She had to resist laughing. He looked like a disappointed dad, not a captain trying to sway his team to stay.

"I thought I made my intentions perfectly clear." Rip snapped and Alex crossed her arms.

"And we wish to be equally clear about ours," Stein spoke up for the group, the team collectively glaring at their former Captain.

Mick slapped him across the shoulder, and Rip whirled around to face the criminal, "Do you mind?"

"Just checking to see if you're real this time."

Alex and Sara stood side by side, not wishing to contribute anything to the conversation. Apparently their glares were enough to stop Rip from making eye contact with them, since he kept his focus on Jax and the Professor.

"You're not ditching us again," Jax stated, like Rip had no choice in the matter, "When the mission's over, then we can all go our separate ways."

Stein supported his student with a similar remark, "And this mission is not over."

"Yeah, just curious how much headway you've had tracking Savage without all of us." Ray gestured to the entire team, a smug look on his face. Alex had never seen it before. She kinda liked it.

Rip scoffed, "None. But neither have I got myself into bar fights in 1975," He looked at Sara and Alex, "and the Old West, put dwarf star technology into the hands of terrorists," His gaze moved to Ray, "or got myself turned into a scary bird monster." He finished with a pointed gesture at Jax, and Alex rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah," Alex finally spoke up, "We screwed up, big deal. That ship is not leaving without us, and neither are you, you got that?"

Rip sighed and nodded, gesturing for them to follow. Alex's lips twitched upward for the first time since returning home and she pressed forward, moving into the ship that had slowly become her home.

They made their way onto the bridge without incident, but Sara's patience could only extend so far.

"Despite my wishes to pursue Savage alone, it seems that you're all intent on seeing this thing through till the bitter-" Rip was cut off with a fist to the jaw, Sara pushing him against the wall and holding a knife to his throat.

"You knew." She choked out, voice thick with anger, "You dropped us off five months later because you knew."

Rip's eyes never left Sara's and Alex was keeping a sharp eye on the knife, ready to disarm Sara at any point.

"Sara, hold on," Alex began, slowly approaching the assassin, "What did Rip know?"

Sara didn't even spare a glance in her direction, "You knew that Laurel was going to die," She dug the knife in deeper into Rip's skin, drawing blood from his throat, "and now you're going to take me back, and I'm going to save my sister."

Holy shit. Alex finally understood why Sara had been so angry before. Rip had robbed her of the same thing he had been robbed of. A chance to save her family.

She would be pissed too.

"I'm afraid that that-"

Rip's stammers were cut off with another outburst from Sara, "You should be afraid."

A moment of silence stood between the two, and Sara's hand began to shake.

"I can't allow you-"

"I don't care about the timeline!" Sara burst again, her voice almost shaking the ship, "You're taking me back now."

Alex sent a silent look toward the other members of the team, asking for their help. Ray was the only one to respond to her plea.

"Look, Sara," He began, "I'm sure there's a valid reason why Rip didn't-"

Sara whipped around, snarling at her friend, "Stay out of this!"

Rip's mind thingy blasted her and she collapsed in his arms, Mick carrying her over his shoulder.

Alex could only look on in shock. Apparently she wasn't the only one.

"What the hell, Rip?"

Rip ignored Jax's protests and turned toward Mick, waving a dismissive hand, "Mr. Rory, take Ms. Lance to sleep it off."

Her fist collided with his jaw and he went reeling again, "What did I do this time?!"

Alex glared at the brit, making it clear that she was not letting him off the hook, "You're a jerk, and you took five months of my life."

Shaking out her hand, she waltzed into the office, staring at the table in the center.

Ray walked in, arms held up in a position of surrender as he began to change the subject, "Not to dismiss what just happened, but we do have to find Savage," He got straight to the point, and Alex shifted her gaze so she was meeting Ray's, "assuming that Kendra and Carter are still on his timeship. He could-"

"Be anywhere in time and space." Rip spoke, defeat lacing his tone, his hand hanging limply by his side. Guilt stirred in the bottom of her stomach, crawling up the lining of the organ until it stuck in her throat.

The punch wasn't part of her plan. But she had to do something to support Sara. No one knew loss better than they did. That didn't mean she didn't feel bad about it.

Jax flapped his arms in frustration, "Oh, well that narrows it down a lot." when he brought them down, a helmet crashed to the ground, drawing everyone's attention to the military helm.

Jax grimaced, "Sorry." He picked up the helmet, staring at it as if seeing it for the first time, "Was this always over here?"

Rip narrowed his eyes, sending a look over his shoulder, "No, it lives over-" He paused, cutting himself off before turning back to Jax, "Did you put it there?"

Jax shook his head and Alex rolled her eyes, letting out a frustrated sigh, "What the hell does it matter? It was over there yesterday and it's here now, not that big of a deal,"

Rip paused, dusting the helmet off, "Chronometric repositioning."

Jax and Alex shared the same look, "What?" they spoke at the same time.

Rip paced the front of the office, explaining the phenomenon to them, "Temporal changes can, on occasion, reverberate through the timeline, physically moving an object from one place to another," He pulled a slip of paper out of the lining of the helmet, his smile growing wider as he read the scrawl, "Gideon?"

"Yes, Captain."

"Plot a course for Saint-Lô, France, 1944."

Alex groaned internally, she hated going back to the 40s. "Why?" She asked aloud, trying to keep her distaste private.

Rip held out the piece of paper, Alex barely able to decipher the messy scrawl, but she recognized the name hastily written at the bottom of the page, "Because that's where Kendra is."

Alex straightened up, her interest finally piqued. Stein asked the question they were all thinking, "How is that possible?"

Ray chuckled to himself, and a familiar look crossed his eyes, "She sent us a message through time," He turned toward the professor, a smirk on his face, "Go ahead, say it."

Stein laughed aloud, "Astonishing."

* * *

She crashed to the ground, sword in hand as she began to take out Nazis one by one. She had done it a thousand times before. And she would fight against them every time. Her sword cut through one, fist knocking out another. The truck was full, but she was prepared. She had her friends.

She ricocheted the bullet back to them, the ammo striking them in the shoulder, or the leg, or in someplace much less comfortable.

She leaped upward, bringing her sword down on the men in the truck. She had to hold back some of her strength. She was a distraction.

They were the distraction while Jax picked up Kendra.

Unfortunately, things didn't always go to plan.

"Fall back!" Rip shouted in her comm, and she started the retreat. She grabbed her lasso instead, tripping the men, wrapping it around their guns to disarm them.

The sound of a gun went off, bullet whizzing past her hair, but a laser charge was heard from behind her and she whirled around to see Ray standing there, urging her to follow him.

"What about Kendra?" She asked, hoping that was the reason they were retreating. Ray shook his head.

"Savage still has her, but we got Carter,"

She dodged another bullet, using her shield to protect herself from the onslaught. This wasn't good at all.

* * *

Alex shook her head, not even trying to understand the complicated numbers Stein had been writing on the window. She was too busy wrapping her head around the idea he had just proposed.

"You're saying Savage wants to destroy the world three times?"  
"In three different times," Jax added on. He was just as confused as she was. "How is that possible?"

Rip shook his head, staring at the math on the window, "It's not, it would create a temporal paradox."

"Which would result in a timequake that would return the Earth to the point of the first chronothermic reaction," Stein spoke excitedly, forgetting that there were people who didn't understand him, "Ancient Egypt."

Alex nodded like she understood (even though she didn't) trying to put all the pieces together. She leaned against the table, the wood digging into her tailbone. "So you're saying he wants to go back to where it all began?"

Stein nodded.

Jax shook his head, "Okay, it's official. This is the craziest bad guy plan in the history of bad guy plans."

Rip chuckled to himself, eyes never leaving the equations Stein had written, "I don't think that sanity is a yardstick by which Vandal Savage can be measured."

"Okay, so which time periods are we talking here?" Jax pressed forward, the three of them blocking any view Alex had of the board and she rolled her eyes, still mulling Savage's plan over in her head.

"You said Savage was in possession of one of these meteorites in 1958," Stein brainstormed, "That was a year of a rare alignment, with the Earth and Thanagar."

Rip nodded, gesturing to the bridge in frustration, "Evidently he got hold of a second meteorite in 1944."

"Which would be useless to him in a year where Earth and Thanagar weren't in alignment," Stein continued to ramble, his hand shaking in excitement as he overlooked his equations, "Now, if my math is correct, and trust me, it is, the next two years that Earth and Thanagar are in sync are 1975 and 2021."

Jax shook his head, eyebrows creased together in confusion, "But Savage still has to do this in three different time periods."

Alex stood up from her position against the table, finally understanding what was happening, "One of the perks of immortality," She realized, an unfamiliar feeling punching her in the gut, "He can."

* * *

The three of them trudged through the Oregon forest, Alex rolling her eyes at the scenery. She hated this place.

"I can't believe I'm here again,"

Mick was more preoccupied with his own revenge, "When can I kill him?"

"We have to wait for the meteor to go critical," Ray spoke up, finally reaching the familiar street.

"When's that?"

Ray and Alex turned to look at each other and she drew her sword, twisting her wrist to loosen it, "When he starts the ritual in all three time periods."

They crouched behind the trees, waiting for Kendra's blood to land on the glowing rock.

A sizzling could be heard, followed by a chanting in a language Alex didn't understand, the three of them hopping out from their hiding place to take down Savage.

A screeching brought their attention to the other side of the road, locking eyes with the winged monsters they had dealt with the last time they were here.

"Really?" Ray whined, prepping his gear, "These guys again?" He stared behind him, gesturing for Mick and Alex to attack, "I got this, you two go after Savage,"

Alex nodded and landed a kick to Savage's chest. Mick dodged his punches and landed some hits of his own, distracting the tyrant while Alex landed hits from the back.

She sliced his arm, and then kicked his knee out of alignment, Mick stepping back to let her get in a few punches of her own. Her elbow collided with his nose, drawing blood from the nostrils with a distinct crack. He tried to dodge her blade but only ended wounding his wrists, his screams filling the night sky. He reached forward, a hidden blade coming her way. Thinking quickly, she used her shield as a way to protect her hips from the cement, sliding through his legs, pushing herself up, and plunged the blade into his back, penetrating the organ and sliding through his heart, the tip of her sword bloodied as it slid back out.

She took one look at Mick and nodded.

"You can't kill me." The blood in Savage's mouth slurred his words, "I'm immortal."

Mick held the flame gun toward the tyrant, "Guess you haven't heard the news."

Fire expelled out of the gun, engulfing Savage in red and white, the colors mixing together like a symphony, and for the first time, Alex understood. She understood why Mick thought fire was the most beautiful thing in the world.

It still didn't make her feel better.

A soft whirring began to emanate from the meteorite, and Alex whipped her head around, joining Mick and Ray in staring in awe at the rock.

"Do something, RoboCop," Mick ordered, with the same tone he always used when bossing others around.

Ray pressed a few buttons on his suit, a tiny smirk poking out from behind the glass, "I'm on it. Got a little trick I've been working on."

A red beam shot out from his arm, engulfing the meteorite and shrinking it down to a tiny size, where it poofed, looking like a kid's science project instead of the terror they had killed Savage to stop.

"Come on," she smirked affectionately, "Let's head back to the Waverider,"

* * *

Alex slammed to the ground, FIRESTORM and Ray flying behind her. Her knees cracked the cement and she caught the sight of Savage's dead body.

She had no sympathy left for him. He deserved it.

"Damn it!" Mick yelled, appearing from behind the generator, "I wanted to be the one to kill him," Alex raised her eyebrows, sending him a look, Mick turned away from her, "Again, I mean."

She rolled her eyes, moving forward to try and incapacitate the last meteorite. Unfortunately, she didn't get it in time.

A familiar whirring was heard and the rock started to glow blue, radiation already infecting the air around them.

Sara approached the meteorite next, "Um...I don't think our problems are over yet."

The rock began to smoke, heat waves rising up from the blue meteorite.

Jax pressed forward, "I'm on it."

He announced, placing his flaming hands on the rock. The team waited. And waited.

But nothing happened.

Jax let out another sigh of frustration, tearing his hands from the rock, "It's not working."

Ray moved from his spot next to Alex, prepping his gear as people moved out of the way, "I got this," He spoke with sure confidence, the laser charging before releasing the red light onto the rock, but after a few seconds the beam puttered out, and Ray went back to fiddling with his suit.

"I don't understand," Ray shook his arm mechanism, knitting his brows in frustration, "I must be all out of power."

"Let me do it," Alex volunteered, refusing to look at any of her teammates. She felt Sara and Ray's eyes on her, "I'm practically invulnerable, I can handle the blast,"

"The keyword in that sentence is practically," Ray began to ramble, "Just because you survived this long doesn't mean you'll live forever, I mean, Savage didn't-"

"I have to do this," Alex cut him off, "This is what I was meant to do okay? This is why Rip recruited me, recruited us, I'm the only one who could handle that blast,"

"You don't know that!" Ray argued, his overprotective nature really starting to piss her off, "You're not your mother Alex-"

"Believe me I know"

"So why do you insist-?"  
"Enough!" Sara broke their argument apart, "We are running out of time, so what do you suggest we do?"

Alex opened her mouth, fully ready to sacrifice herself the way her father did. The way Leonard did.

"Don't even think about it," Sara cut her off before she could volunteer again, "We're gonna figure this out without losing anyone on our team,"

Alex shut her mouth, trying to come up with a new way to stop the meteorite from exploding.

"What happens if only one of these goes off?" Sara asked Rip, and he scratched the back of his head.

"Uh... time will remain intact." The Captain announced before gesturing to the area around them, "The world? Not so much."

"So let's fly this thing out of here." Jax offered and Kendra was quick to refute that.

"To where? We would never get it far enough away."

Ray's eyes lit up, "Maybe the Waverider can. Rip, we need-" Ray's words stopped in his mouth, eyes searching for their captain. "Rip?"

He was nowhere to be found.

But the engine of the Waverider and the tractor beam engulfing the meteorite told them everything they needed to know.

"Rip! What are you doing?" Sara yelled into the comms, and Rip's voice sounded hurried, rushed, like he wanted this over as soon as possible.

"I'm flying the Waverider into the sun, with the meteor on board."

"And you on it." Sara protested.

Alex shook her head and spoke next, "I'm sorry, did you say into the sun?"

There was a pause, and she wondered if Rip would even say goodbye.

A shaky breath and her question was answered, "I guess this is good-bye."

Alex shut her eyes, letting out a soft exhale as she dropped her hand to her side.

"It's been a pleasure, Captain," Ray spoke aloud.

"Likewise, Dr. Palmer."

Jax wasn't willing to give up so easily, "But you brought us all into this, man."

"Which is why I'm doing this alone, Mr. Jackson," Rip spoke up, hesitation in his voice, "I'll have no one else die for my choices."

Sara brought out the big guns, "This isn't going to bring Snart back."

"And I don't want to lose another friend," Mick added on.

Rip paused, his voice crackling over the comm again, "I appreciate that, Mr. Rory."

"Rip-" Alex's voice caught in her throat, "Thank you, for everything,"

He paused again, and responded in the kindest tone she'd ever heard him use, "Thank you, Miss Prince, I only wish I could've eased your pain," He hesitated again, "I must say, it's been an honor to serve as your cap…"

His comm cut out and all they could do was wait.

**20 minutes ago...**

Alex shut her mouth, trying to come up with a new way to stop the meteorite from exploding.

"What happens if only one of these goes off?" Sara asked Rip, and he scratched the back of his head.

"Uh... time will remain intact." The Captain announced before gesturing to the area around them, "The world? Not so much."

"So let's fly this thing out of here." Jax offered and Kendra was quick to refute that.

"To where? We would never get it far enough away."

Ray's eyes lit up, "Maybe the Waverider can. Rip, we need-" Ray's words stopped in his mouth, eyes searching for their captain. "Rip?"

He was nowhere to be found.

And neither was the meteorite.

"Where'd it go?" Alex asked, sharing a worried look with Sara. As soon as the words left her mouth, the ground rumbled beneath her, the silver and orange ship appearing in the same spot it had been in minutes before.

Her mouth dropped open and she shared a look with Ray.

"Will somebody please tell me what just happened?"

The Waverider was in tatters. Half the ship had been burned beyond recognition, and exposed livewires decorated the floors, ready to electrocute any team member at any second.

Alex gingerly moved around the loose wiring, finally seeing Rip's haphazard appearance.

"Rip?" She asked, lifting her eyebrows at the sight of his singed coat and soot-covered face.

"Sorry if I gave you all a fright." Rip began, shuffling around the debris.

"What happened to the meteor?" Sara asked next.

Rip placed his hands on his hips again, what was left of his duster swirling around his legs, "Uh, I flew it into the heart of the sun," He said nonchalantly, Alex's eyebrows jumping up at the statement, "Well, I angled the ship to eject the meteorite before impact, and then, uh... time jumped away."

"I'm sorry, did you say-"  
"Yes Miss Prince," Rip cut her off, a smirk on his face, "I did say the sun."

"You could have been killed." Jax protested, and Mick agreed.

"Should have been. You're a moron."

Rip simply laughed it off, rubbing his hands together as he strode down the hall, "Now, who fancies a return trip to 2016?"

Alex just shook her head, "I hate time travel,"

The bridge seemed to be the only untouched part of the ship. Alex wandered around, dragging her finger across the control panel. She ended up in between Ray and Sara, arms crossed as she stared at their new Captain.

"I can't believe it's over." Kendra mused.

Rip bobbed his head, "Well, for some of you, yes," He announced, a renewed sense about him, "My journey, it seems, is only just beginning."

"How does that work?" Mick complained, flopping into the seat, "Savage is three times dead."

"The Time Masters are no longer of growing concern," Rip continued, his gaze washing over all of them, "due to our destruction of the Oculus. Someone needs to be responsible for protecting the timeline. Who better than a former Time Master?" He paused once again, gesturing to the rest of the team, "And any of you who'd like to join me."

Alex scanned the rest of the team, their expressions neutral and unreadable. Except for Ray. The two of them locked eyes, the exact same glint in both of their expressions. She knew her choice.

* * *

Ray found her on the same rooftop they had been recruited, overlooking the city with a soft smile on her face.

"Hey," He spoke up, pulling her out of her thoughts, Alex's face widened into a smile, arms crossed.

"Hey," She sounded cheerier, more than she had the entire day, "What's going on?"  
"I just finished checking in with Mick," Ray announced, picking at his fingernails. It had always been a tick of his. Something his mother had tried to get him to stop doing. He didn't know why that urge got stronger when he was around Alex, "Now I'm checking in with you,"

She let out a light chuckle, pressing forward, uncrossing her hands and unraveling her fists to reveal the extrapolator in her hands.

Ray's heart sank to his stomach. She wasn't coming with them. She was going home.

Alex had been planning on leaving without saying goodbye.

This was goodbye.

"It's not what you think," She refuted, twirling the device in her hand, "I've been holding onto this ever since Star City," she began, shaking her head, "I thought it was the most important thing on this trip. That this was a one-time thing and then I'd be home," Alex bit her lip, the way she always did when she was mulling things over. Ray braced himself for the other shoe to drop.

It always did.

With Anna, with Felicity, with Kendra. He didn't know if he could take any more goodbyes. Especially from Alex.

He watched her throat bob up and down, never taking her eyes off the device. A crack was heard, her strength breaking the extrapolator into two neat halves.

"Alex, what are you-"

"It's not the most important thing anymore," Alex smiled, eyes glassy, "I have a home with you guys, on the Waverider, and I'm not ready to give that up,"

Ray cupped his hand around hers, thumb scraping the back of her hand, his back shivering at the touch. He dismissed the static between them as an aftereffect of breaking the extrapolator.

He didn't want to think about that.

Especially when she hasn't shown any signs-

"Ray..." Her voice was soft, barely a whisper, doe-eyes peeking out from behind dark lashes. They seemed to be moving closer, the inches between them disappearing, "Whatever this is," She spoke instead, her throat bobbing up and down again, "I like it, a lot."

Ray resisted the urge to bring his hand up to her cheek, instead stretching it beside him, eyes never leaving hers, "I like it too,"

A shuddered breath left her mouth and Alex seemed much lighter, the two bursting into withheld laughter, unable to do anything else.

He stared at the broken device in her hand, trying to change the subject, "You know, as much as I appreciate the symbolism, this could've been something amazing to study,"

There it was again. That bright laugh that lit up the entire room. It felt like sunshine.

"Do you want half of it to study?" Alex offered to him, "Keep it, I'm sure you could find a use for it,"

Ray nodded and gently took the other half, relishing in the soft touch between them. They met each other's gaze again and burst into laughter.

It felt nice.

It felt good.

* * *

Ray and Alex showed up, unable to keep themselves from looking at each other. She felt her face get red and played with her half of the extrapolator in her pocket. It soothed her, knowing that Ray held the other half.

She didn't know why.

"A full compliment!" Rip slapped his hands together, chuckling at the sight of all nine of them back together again, "To be honest, I had my doubts that all of you would be willing to throw in with me for a second go."

"Well, actually-" Carter's voice dragged their attention to the couple. Kendra's emotions were written all over her face.

"We're not coming with you." She announced. Alex was surprised by how upset she felt. Despite everything that happened, she did like Kendra.

They had been friends at one point.

"With Savage gone," Carter continued, never taking his eyes off of Kendra, "we want to start fresh, see what happens."

"I give it three months, tops." Mick offered, waiting to see if anybody would take him up on his bet. Alex shook her head.

Kendra stepped forward, clearly trying to figure out what to say, "Look, I just…I want to say thank you," She turned toward Ray and Alex, "To all of you. Ray, Alex, I-"

Alex held up her hand, "All's forgiven," She threw their past away, embracing the young woman, "Stay safe, please."

"You too" Kendra whispered back, turning toward Ray, who was nothing but smiles.

"This is... it's meant to be," Ray assured her, Kendra's tension disappearing from her body, "I wish both of you nothing but the best."

Kendra sent a look at Alex and Sara again, "Be safe."

The two women nodded, and Alex hoped that she wasn't a major factor in their decision to leave.

Carter simply waved, the two of them sprouting their wings as they flew away.

Rip turned back to the team, his excitement undeterred, "So, shall we?"

The team pressed forward, their steps halted as a booming sound was heard in the sky. An unmistakable sound that both Alex and her mother knew.

It was the sound of an aircraft crashing.

"Get down," She ordered, and the team turned to look at her.

Sara creased her forehead, "Why?"

"That thing is crashing," Alex warned them, "And it's not slowing down,"

The team followed her lead, plummeting to the ground as the aircraft burned through the atmosphere, collapsing onto the gravel, a familiar shape appearing through the smoke.

"Is that-"

"The Waverider." Rip cut Sara off, helping the Canary up. Ray did the same thing for Alex.

"Another Waverider?" Stein questioned, staring at Rip.

The ramp descended, a hooded figure walking down to join them in the clearing.

"What the hell's going on?" Jax asked next, and Alex pressed forward, moving away from the rest of the team.

"Who the hell are you?" She yelled out, the hooded figure approaching them, a determined look on his face.

"Is this 2016? Is this May, 2016?" The figure asked, urgency in his voice.

Alex nodded, "What about it?"

The figure chuckled, a smile growing on his face, "You're exactly where you said you'd be." He pointed to their Waverider, "Do not get on that ship. If you do, you're all dead."

"Says who?" Sara spoke up from beside Alex, crossing her arms.

"Says you, Miss Lance, Miss Prince. You two sent me."

The two women shared a look with each other, both equally confused at his statements.

"So let me ask again," Alex threatened, trying to make herself more intimidating, "Who the hell are you?"

The figure laughed, removing his hood to reveal a cropped haircut and deep blue eyes, he looked like a leader, "My name is Rex Tyler. I'm a member of the Justice Society of America."


End file.
